Maria Theresa Monument

An impressive monument to the great lady of Austrian history between two identically built stately buildings now housing museums.

The 19.4 meter high Maria Theresa monument between the Kunsthistorisches Museum and the Natural History Museum is considered the most imposing work of recent plastic art in Vienna. Caspar von Zumbusch worked on this work for thirteen years (model 1874, completion 1887, unveiled on May 13, 1888, the ruler's birthday). The architecture comes from Carl von Hasenauer; everything figural is made of bronze.

The Maria Theresa Monument is a huge monument in the middle of
Maria Theresa Square. Probably the most important monument of the Habsburgs
was built under the direction of Kaspar von Zumbusch over a 13-year construction period.
It was ceremoniously unveiled in 1888 in the presence of Empress Sissi.
The monument, which is over 19 meters high and weighs around 44 tons, represents Empress Maria Theresa (she ruled from 1740 to 1780, she reformed the school system, for example, and took care of state affairs as well as her 16 children) in the form of a larger-than-life, 6-meter-high figure. With her right hand she greets her people, in her left hand the Empress holds a roll of documents from the Pragmatic Sanction and the scepter. Around her are four equestrian statues of her generals.
The monument is a world cultural heritage site.
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