The Gifts of Stolem sculpture

 Technique: bronze sculpture, cast

Dimensions: approx. 150 cm (height)

Object: The Gifts of Stolem is a sculpture in the shape of a sphere on an axis, at a slight angle in relation to the ground. It is set on a small hill finished with pavers. The object is made of bronze and consists of 30 plaques with bas-reliefs that fill the sphere’s surface in a striped arrangement. The plaques show 30 animal and human figures from The Gifts of Stolem, a legend written by Jerzy Samp. The figures, shown in a simplified and stylised form, include a lion, a dragon, a crocodile, a deer, a turtle, a falcon, an eagle and a knight. “This is a ball for a game that, according to a Gdańsk legend, was offered to the city by Stolem as thanks for the hospitality. When he came to Gdańsk, instead of lying on the ground, he could sit on the tower of St. Mary’s Church (which is why it is so flat)”.

Place: The sculpture was placed in front of the main entrance to the Madison shopping centre. Jakub Maliszewski is also the author of the gallery’s interior design, which is meant to resemble a downtown street in Gdańsk. The ground floor walls feature ceramic coats of arms of Gdańsk families, a medallion, bas-reliefs with putti, mascarons and decorative keystones imitating the architectural details of the Gdańsk Old Town. There is an overscaled sculpture of Hevelius’s Parrot  on the first floor, illustrating Jerzy Samp’s Legend of Master Hevelius’ Parrot. Three lions placed on separate consoles in a small patio at a height of 18 m are a reference to the Gdańsk coat of arms.

Information about the author: Jakub Maliszewski was born in 1972 in Białystok. In 1999, he obtained his degree from the Faculty of Sculpture of the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdańsk (Prof. Franciszek Duszeńko’s studio). His work has been shown at many solo and group exhibitions. He is the author of sculptures and commemorative plaques, interior design elements and façades (“Pod Papugami” and “Maharadża” restaurants in Gdańsk), altars and stations of the cross (Calvary in Gdańsk, Św. Wojciech).

Condition of the object: –

Owner/guardian: Madison Shopping Centre

Author of the entry: Kora Kowalska