Transplanting Italo-Africa: The Monumento ai caduti d’Africa at Siracusa from colonial conception to Italian construction

Abstract

Romano Romanelli designed the Monumento ai caduti d’Africa at Siracusa in 1938 to commemorate the Italian colonization of East Africa. The structure was originally intended for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, but it was never constructed within the colonial capital. After the fall of the regime and the collapse of Italy's colonial program, it was eventually installed in Siracusa, a Sicilian port city once considered a springboard for the fascist colonies, in 1968. The bronze statuary and marble relief panels combine to create an artistic program that continues to valorize colonialism and debates surrounding the monument remain unresolved. This paper considers the controversial history of the Monumento ai caduti d’Africa in relation to Italo-African colonial narratives and legacies. I propose the practice of artistic intervention as a potential solution that could neutralize or counter the fascist signification of this structure.