Anonymous Budapest, Hungary 2011
This is a monument to a guy who called himself Anonymi Bele Regis Notarii (anonymous notary of King Bela) and who penned what is considered to be the first comprehensive history of Hungary around the year 1200. His name was later shortened to just Anonymous. So was he the original anonymous author? Could be, I can’t find any decent etymology of the word but nothing I’ve read suggests otherwise.
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I love cemetery statues and this one is outstanding! American cemeteries are usually not old enough (at least in the west) for this type of monument. Looks very mysterious…like one of the ghosts from Dickens’ A Christmas Carol…face hidden behind the cowl.
Thanks Kathy. The cowl makes sense I guess because he is after all anonymous. This statue wasn’t actually in a cemetery. It was a monument in a city park. I’ve got some more Budapest cemetery photos coming up sometime in the near future though, so stay tuned! BTW, it looks like I’m going to be in Missoula this Friday evening to attend the artists reception for the MAM auction exhibit. (I have one photo in the exhibit.) If you’re planning on attending, maybe I’ll see you there.
Larry,
According to the dictionary on my computer, the origin of anonymous is Greek.
ORIGIN late 16th cent.: via late Latin from Greek anōnumos ‘nameless’ (from an- ‘without’ + onoma ‘name’ ) + -ous .
Jeffrey, I saw that origin reference to the late 16th century too which is interesting since this guy called himself that in the year 1200.
Larry,
I have a commitment Friday afternoon which often runs long. But if I finish in time, I’ll drop by the artist reception for the auction to say hello. Congratulations on having an image selected. And be sure to spend some time in the Ansel Adams exhibit…as if you need any encouragement! 🙂
Kathy