The Monument of Zalongo by sculptor George Zongolopoulos has been declared a Monument of Modern Cultural Heritage by the Ministry of Culture. It is located in the community of Kamarina, in the region of Preveza.
The monument is one of the first examples of applying the principles of modernism in monumental sculpture in post-war Greece. The female figures do not represent specific historical individuals; intentionally, the sculptor left them without specific features, omitting facial and body details to allow the viewer to imagine each woman through their own soul and imagination. In this way, Zongolopoulos avoided realism, despite the anthropomorphic nature of the monument.
Its natural location and monumental scale—18 x 15 meters—make it visible from a distance of 30 km, as the artist himself noted in 1960, recalling seeing it from a ship traveling from Greece to Italy. He characteristically wrote:
“The Heroon is placed on the edge of a vertical cliff […], and access to it is only possible via a narrow path through steep rocks. To the north, Zalongo is surrounded by the majestic mountains of Epirus. Below the cliff, at a distance of 800 meters, lie the ruins of ancient Kassopi. Between Zalongo and the sea passes the Athens-Corfu tourist road. While sailing between Corfu and Italy, the monument is visible. Despite the rugged and majestic sight of the Epirotic mountains and the vast Ionian Sea, a sense of balance and serenity is created. The scale of the Heroon aligns with the scale of the landscape.”
The monument was designed by George Zongolopoulos and executed under his supervision, along with architect Patroklos Karantinos and marble craftsman Eleftherios Gyftopoulos, within the archaeological site of Kassopi.
The project was the result of a public competition, and its construction was strongly supported by the local community through volunteer labor, as well as by state institutions, making it a unique example of public art in Greece.
On behalf of the Foundation, Nikos Theodoridis—Zongolopoulos’ nephew and president of the Foundation who submitted the request for the monument’s designation—stated:
“The recognition of the sculpture ‘Heroon of Zalongo’ by the Ministry of Culture and Sports as a Monument of Modern Cultural Heritage is a vindication not only for the great Greek artist George Zongolopoulos but also an acknowledgment of the artistic value of the monument itself. At the same time, this designation is a tribute to the sacrifice of the Greeks of the pre-revolutionary period in the name of Freedom, and their resounding response to the dilemma ‘Freedom or Death’—a cry that became the symbol of the War of Independence. It is also a recognition of the role of the Greek woman, the heroic figure who fought and sacrificed alongside the man, the husband, and the son.”
The monument’s designation coincides, fortunately, with both the bicentennial of the Greek War of Independence and the 60th anniversary of its unveiling.
Το μέγεθος του μνημείου σε όρους αστικού τοπίου, αντιστοιχεί σε μία πενταόροφη πολυκατοικία που αναπτύσσεται σε δύο οικόπεδα» επισημαίνει ο Νίκος Θεοδωρίδης και προσθέτει: «Η κατασκευή του ξεκίνησε το 1954 και διήρκεσε μέχρι το 1960 και χρηματοδοτήθηκε από σχολικούς εράνους και από το υπουργείο Εθνικής ‘Αμυνας, το οποίο συνεισέφερε και με εργασία στρατιωτών, αλλά και με αυτοκίνητα και άλλον τεχνολογικό εξοπλισμό. Ο Γιώργος Ζογγολόπουλος με τη σύζυγό του, ζωγράφο Ελένη Πασχαλίδου-Ζογγολοπούλου, από το 1954 μέχρι και το 1960 κάθε άνοιξη άφηναν το εργαστήριό τους στο Ψυχικό και, φορτώνοντας τα εργαλεία της δουλειάς του ο Γ. Ζογγολόπουλος, επιβιβάζονταν σε ένα φορτηγό του στρατού και πήγαιναν στην Καμαρίνα, στα ριζά του γκρεμού του Ζαλόγγου. Η δε πρόσβαση στο σημείο της ανέγερσης του μνημείου γινόταν από ένα υποτυπώδες μονοπάτι ανάμεσα από βράχια και θάμνους.
The monument's interior is made of reinforced concrete, while the exterior, depicting the female figures, consists of 4,300 blocks of white Epirotic stone, selected by the artist from a quarry 160 km away from the site. These were transported in blocks and carved on site, measuring approximately 50 x 25 x 20 cm each. All this material had to be carried by hand to the top. There was no machinery. Ingeniously, Zongolopoulos built a lift using a military jeep engine, cables, and pulleys, but after an accident, for safety reasons, he decided materials would be carried only by people and animals. The labor effort was communal. Soldiers, men, and women from the nearby villages of Kamarina, Zalongo, and Kryopigi Preveza carried water, cement, sand, iron, and stones on their backs or using animals, climbing the difficult trail for six years each spring to deliver materials to the top where Zongolopoulos and his team constructed the work.
“The result fulfilled everyone’s expectations.”
“The work was so impressive that immediately disputes arose about the authorship of the idea and the initiative for its construction,” Theodoridis notes. “Newspapers of the time report that the unveiling took place on June 10, 1961, with great ceremony, in the presence of King Paul and Queen Frederica, members of Prime Minister Karamanlis’ government, Church representatives, and a large crowd.”
Over the years, poor lightning protection and winter frost caused damage to the monument. Zongolopoulos’ appeals for restoration fell on deaf ears.
Τέσσερα χρόνια μετά τον θάνατο του δημιουργού, ύστερα από ενέργειες του Ιδρύματος Γεωργίου Ζογγολόπουλου και της περιφέρειας, το 2007, ο Δήμος Ζαλόγγου και η Περιφέρεια Ηπείρου πήρε ένα σημαντικό κονδύλι για την αποκατάσταση του έργου. Τμήματα από τις κεφαλές των γυναικών είχαν καταστραφεί και εξαφανιστεί τελείως, το Ίδρυμα Γεωργίου Ζογγολόπουλου αποφάσισε να αναθέσει στο Εργαστήριο Φωτογραμμετρίας του Εθνικού Μετσόβιου Πολυτεχνείου την τρισδιάστατη ψηφιακή αποτύπωση και γεωμετρική αποτύπωση του μνημείου. Η επισκευή και αποκατάσταση του μνημείου από τεχνίτες, καλλιτέχνες και φοιτητές συντηρητές, καθώς και η νέας τεχνολογίας αντικεραυνική προστασία, διήρκεσε πέντε χρόνια και έγινε με υποδείξεις, μελέτες και επιστασία του διευθυντή του Ιδρύματος Γεωργίου Ζογγολόπουλου και αρχιτέκτονα, ‘Αγγελου Μωρέτη.
During the restoration, 47 years after construction, plaques were found layered over one another—added during various “inaugurations” over the years. These were preserved and embedded separately at the monument’s base as part of its history.
The declaration of the sculpture as a Monument of Modern Cultural Heritage ensures its protection and official care by the Greek State in accordance with its historical and cultural value, the Zongolopoulos Foundation emphasizes.
Given that “access to the sacred rock and monument site is only possible via a 410-step stone path, designed by Patroklos Karantinos, the construction of a cable car for easier access is deemed necessary,” according to the Foundation’s announcement.
A 1:10 scale version of the Monument of Zalongo was created by the sculptor in four bronze casts, which are housed at the Presidential Mansion, the National Glyptotheque, the Benaki Museum, and the Open-Air Municipal Sculpture Gallery of Psychiko, which is dedicated to the work of George Zongolopoulos.
