Coordinates: 55°41′16.7″N 37°34′29.

3″E

Ho Chi Minh Monument

The Ho Chi Minh Monument in Moscow (Russian:
Памятник Хо Ши Мину) at Ho Chi Minh Square in
Akademichesky District memorializes North
Vietnamese president Ho Chi Minh. The monument was
inaugurated on May 18, 1990, on the eve of Ho Chi
Minh's 100th birthday.[1]

Contents
Description
Ho Chi Minh Monument
History
Usage today
References
External links

Description
The monument is made of bronze and stone, with a portrait of Ho Chi Minh embossed on a giant disc.
Below the disc is a sculpture of a Vietnamese man rising from his knees.[1] Behind the disc are images of
tropical flowers and two curved bamboos. Below the monument is a quotation from Ho Chi Minh "Нет
ничего дороже независимости, свободы" (Nothing is more precious than independence, liberty).[1]

The creators of the monument are the sculptor Vladimir Efimovich Tsigal[1] and architect Roman
Grigoryevich Kananin. Tsigal visited Vietnam in 1985 to research Ho Chi Minh for his project. According to
him, the round disc is "the image of Vietnam's sun, representing the dream for a bright future for Vietnam",
and he used the image of the two curved bamboos "stemming from the understanding of the emblematic
Vietnamese plant: the bamboo can be curved, but it's difficult to break, similar to the will and strength of
Vietnam."[2]

The entire project cost about 1 million Soviet ruble.[3]

History
Ho Chi Minh Square was inaugurated in 1969, after the death of Ho Chi Minh. In 1985, the Central
Committee and Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union decided to create a monument at the square. This
decision was seen as counter to Ho Chi Minh's wishes, whose last testament requested that no statues or
monuments are to be made in his honor.[3]

The construction of the monument generated controversy among some Muscovites. Firstly, they contended
that breaking down trees and bringing in granite caused aesthetic and ecological damage to the area.[3]
Secondly, they believed that the cost of more than 1 million Soviet ruble for the monument could be better
used to build 150 good apartments, helping to alleviate the housing situation in the city. On April 4, 1990,
students in Moscow organized a rally to call on the government to strictly fulfill Ho Chi Minh's will. They
demanded that the government dismantle the monument, sell it to Vietnam, and restore the square to its
original condition. According to them, Ho Chi Minh had thrice in his wills requested that people honor him
by planting trees, not by building monuments.[3] A representative from the government replied that since
Vietnam already had a monument to Lenin, the USSR should have a monument to Ho Chi Minh to
reciprocate. According to the representative, the square had already been ruined and the government had
already spent 200,000 rubles at the construction site and 500,000 rubles to cast the sculptures.[3]

On May 18, 1990, on the eve of Ho Chi Minh's 100th birthday, the Ho Chi Minh monument was
inaugurated.[1]

During the collapse of the Soviet Union, some people demanded the demolition of the monument due to its
association with authoritarianism.[4] The Moscow government in 1991 wanted to destroy the monument.
This idea was opposed by those sympathetic to Vietnam, such as the cosmonaut Gherman Stepanovich
Titov,[5] and Vietnamese diplomats, who suggested moving the statue to the Embassy of Vietnam in
Moscow. However, as of 2020 the monument still stood at its original location.[6][7]

Usage today
Muscovites nickname the monument the "flying saucer monument" (памятником летающей
тарелке)[8][9] because of its strange shape. In slang, it is also called the "ruble" (Рубль) because of its
similarity to the Jubilee ruble with the portrait of Lenin.[10] Some people satirically call it the "Monument
commemorating 300 years of the Mongol-Tatar yoke" (памятником 300-летию татаро-монгольского
ига).[11]

For former Soviet advisors who served during the Vietnam War, the monument serves as the annual meeting
location on the occasion of Ho Chi Minh's birthday, at 10 AM.[12][13]

The monument is often visited by members of the Vietnamese community in Russia, who use it as a public
gathering place, as well as a wedding venue.[1] Functionaries from Vietnam also often visit the monument
and place wreaths of flowers.[1]

References
1. "Quảng trường Hồ Chí Minh ở Thủ đô Matxcơva" (http://baotanghochiminh.vn/quang-truong-h
o-chi-minh-o-thu-do-matxcova.htm) [Ho Chi Minh Square in the capital Moscow] (in
Vietnamese). Ho Chi Minh Museum. February 24, 2018. Retrieved May 3, 2020.
2. Hải Hà (May 19, 2015). "Trò chuyện với tác giả bức phù điêu Hồ Chí Minh ở Matxcơva- ký ức
không thể quên" (https://baonga.com/tro-chuyen-voi-tac-gia-buc-phu-dieu-ho-chi-minh-o-matx
cova--ky-uc-khong-the-quen.html) [Interview with the author of the Ho Chi Minh relief in
Moscow - unforgettable memories]. Báo Nga (in Vietnamese). Retrieved May 3, 2020.
3. "ДЕРЕВО - ЛУЧШИЙ ПАМЯТНИК ВОЖДЮ" (https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/266097) [Trees
- the best monument for a leader]. Kommersant (in Russian). April 9, 1990. Retrieved May 4,
2020.
4. ЮРИЙ Ъ-ПАНКОВ (November 11, 1991). "7 ноября на московской площади Хо Ши Мина
произошло столкновение учащихся школы N45 с вьетнамскими рабочими из-за
одноименного памятника" (https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/1303) [On November 7, students
of school N45 clashed with Vietnamese workers on the Ho Chi Minh Square in Moscow due to
the monument of the same name]. Kommersant (in Russian). Retrieved May 14, 2020.
 5. ЕКАТЕРИНА Ъ-ДЕМЬЯНОВА (November 25, 1991). "Джохар Дудаев: Хочу предупредить
("Советская Россия", 16.11.91)" (https://www.kommersant.ru/doc/1546). Kommersant (in
Russian). Retrieved May 4, 2020.
6. "Наша история" (http://akademicheskiymedia.ru/history/pamyatnik-kho-shi-minu/). Твоя
газета: Газета Академического района (in Russian). Retrieved May 3, 2020.
7. Александр ТРУБИЦЫН (May 19, 2015). "Россия - Вьетнам: год юбилеев" (https://kprf.ru/pra
vda/issues/2015/51/article-51325/) [Russia - Vietnam: A year of anniversaries]. Pravda (in
Russian). Communist Party of the Russian Federation. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
8. льга Шаблинская (November 17, 2019). "Актриса Ольга Леснова: Дарвиновский музей –
гордость района Академический" (https://aif.ru/my_area/academichesky/aktrisa_olga_lesnov
a_darvinovskiy_muzey_gordost_rayona_akademicheskiy) [Actress Olga Lesnova: Darwin
Museum is the pride of Akademichesky District]. Argumenty i Fakty (in Russian). Retrieved
May 3, 2020.
9. Алена Водопьянова (June 17, 2016). "Сленг москвичей: Орехово-Кокосово, Комса и
памятник Бомжу" (https://riamo.ru/article/142313/sleng-moskvichej-orehovo-kokosovo-komsa-
i-pamyatnik-bomzhu.xl) [Moscow slang: Orekhovo-Kokosovo, Koms and monument for the
homeless]. Региональное информационное агентство Московской области (in Russian).
Retrieved May 4, 2020.
10. АЛЕКСАНДРА МАЯНЦЕВА (September 8, 2011). "В столице стоит "Мужик в бигудях" " (http
s://www.kp.ru/daily/26555/376110/) [In the capital there is a "Man in curlers"]. Komsomolskaya
Pravda (in Russian). Retrieved May 3, 2020.
11. Yandex Maps (June 30, 2019). "7 самых необычных памятников в России" (https://zen.yand
ex.ru/media/yandexmaps/7-samyh-neobychnyh-pamiatnikov-v-rossii-5d191f0960d75900ad953
f1d) [7 most unusual monuments in Russia] (in Russian). Retrieved May 3, 2020.
12. Нгуен Данг Фат. "39-я ежегодная встреча советских военных специалистов, работавших
во Вьетнаме во время войны" (http://vietnam.vnanet.vn/Internet/ru-RU/49/130/96/14375/8/20
08/Default.aspx) [The 39th annual meeting of Soviet military specialists who worked in
Vietnam during the war]. VietnamNet (in Russian). Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/2009
0923213944/http://vietnam.vnanet.vn/Internet/ru-RU/49/130/96/14375/8/2008/Default.aspx)
from the original on September 23, 2009.
13. Nam Đông and Quế Anh (May 19, 2019). "Vẫn vẹn nguyên ký ức về Bác Hồ" (https://nhanda
n.com.vn/chinhtri/item/40239702-van-ven-nguyen-ky-uc-ve-bac-ho.html) [The memories of
Uncle Ho are still pristine]. Nhân Dân (in Vietnamese). Communist Party of Vietnam. Retrieved
May 3, 2020.

External links
Video about the monument (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXJIoWrpl1Q) (in Russian)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ho_Chi_Minh_Monument&oldid=960550548"

This page was last edited on 3 June 2020, at 15:33 (UTC).

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