Monument to Dositej (Dimitrije) Obradović

Dositej Obradović was a famous Serbian author and enlightener. The monument was installed in 1914, upon the suggestion of the Serbian Literary Association and Jovan Skerlić. The idea for a memorial had been present since the middle of the 19th century, but was only realized in 1911, on the occasion of 100 years since the death of Dositej. It was initially located at the entrance into Kalemegdan. However, when the University Park was constructed in the 1930s, the monument was relocated here and installed across the lane from the Josif Pančić memorial. The bronze statue was made by sculptor Rudolf Valdec and represents the leader of Serbian Enlightenment as ‘a man of letters’, traveling the world in search for knowledge. Dositej is depicted in motion, with a hat and some books in one hand and a walking cane in the other, and at the bottom is an inscription of his own words: ‘Learning in stride, look to the centuries!’