Alley of Classics, Chișinău

The Alley of Classics (Romanian: Aleea Clasicilor) is a sculptural complex located in the Stephen the Great Park in Central Chișinău, Moldova.^[1]

Alley of Classics

Location	Central Chișinău
Coordinates	47°01′32″N 28°49′39″E
Type	Sculptural complex
Beginning date	1957
Opening date	April 29, 1958
Dedicated to	Romanian cultural elite

Overview

The alley is decorated on both sides with red granite busts of classic literary figures and political leaders from Moldova.^[2] The alley is located between the Ștefan cel Mare boulevard and the bronze bust of Alexander Pushkin, set on a granite column and made by Russian sculptor Alexander Opekushin.^[2] The alley was built and received its name in 1958, and became one of the most important tourist attractions in Chișinău.^[3] At first there were only twelve sculptures, but after the fall of the Soviet Union the local authorities added busts of Romanian and Moldovan writers and poets that were banned during the Soviet regime.^[2]

The idea of a sculptural complex was launched by the interwar sculptor Alexandru Plămădeală, who dreamed to create an open-air museum. Just during the Khrushchev Thaw, the Alley of Classics was unveiled on April 29, 1958, in the Stephen the Great Park (former "A. S. Pușkin" Park). The sculptural complex from Cișmigiu Gardens in Bucharest served as a model.^[4]

Busts

The bust of Alexander Pushkin

The Alley of Classics contains 28 busts (including that of Alexander Pushkin, lying at the head of the alley) in alphabetical order.^[2]

Nr	Bust[3]	Unveiled[3]	Sculptor[3]	Image
1	Vasile Alecsandri	1957	Lazăr Dubinovschi [ro]
2	Tudor Arghezi	1995	Dimitrie Verdeanu
3	Gheorghe Asachi	1957	Lazăr Dubinovschi
4	George Bacovia	2001	Milița Petrașcu
5	Lucian Blaga	1992	Alexandra Picunov [ro]
6	Dimitrie Cantemir	1957	Nikolay Gorenashev
7	George Călinescu	1997	Serghei Ganenko
8	George Coșbuc	1996	Constantin Popovici [ro]
9	Ion Creangă	1957	Lev Averbuh [ro]
10	Alecu Donici	1957	Ioan Cheptănaru
11	Mircea Eliade	1997	Vasile Golea
12	Mihai Eminescu	1957	Lazăr Dubinovschi
13	Octavian Goga	2000	Cornel Medrea
14	Bogdan Petriceicu Hasdeu	1957	Ioan Cheptănaru
15	Alexandru Hâjdeu	1957	Vladislav Krakoveak
16	Nicolae Iorga	1990?	Mihail Ekobici
17	Mihail Kogălniceanu	1990?	?
18	Alexei Mateevici	1990	Dmitri Rusu-Skvortsov
19	Nicolae Milescu	1957	Lev Averbuh
20	Constantin Negruzzi	1957	Lazăr Dubinovschi & Aleksandr Maiko
21	Liviu Rebreanu	2009	Milița Petrașcu
22	Alecu Russo	1957	Vasili Larcenko
23	Mihail Sadoveanu	1990?	Group of artists
24	Constantin Stamati	1957	Leonid Fitov
25	Nichita Stănescu	1990?	Group of artists
26	Constantin Stere	1991	Giorgi Dubrovin
27	Grigore Vieru	2010	Victor Macovei & Ruslan Tihonciuc

Bibliography

• Călina Trifan, "Aleea Clasicilor", Chișinău, Editura "Arc", 2009.