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99% Invisible, 99% Invisible-05- 99% Forgotten

99% Invisible-05- 99% Forgotten

Roman Mars (RM): This is 99% Invisible. I'm Roman Mars. RM: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone stand in the desert.

William Littmann (WL):In Osymandias

RM: The poem by Percy Shelley

WL:The poem is about a historic monument of a figure

RM: A shattered visage lies

WL:Who has a wrinkled lip and a sneer of cold command. The statue points to all the works around him and the poem read “My name is Osymandias, king of kings.”

RM: Look upon my works, ye mighty and despair.

WL: And the rest of the poem says that all of the works that the statue is pointing to have disappeared.

RM: Nothing besides remains.

WL: So it's really a poem about – that the figure remains but everything around it has disappeared. Everything that the figure and the statue was supposed to be proud of.

RM: But this is about another former statue. That once stood high above San Francisco.

WL: This is kind of the inverse. All of the things around it, all of the landscape that the statue was supposed to sort of urge to liberty and philanthropy, that's all still here. In San Francisco, what the statue was dedicated to improving is there but the statue its self has disappeared.

RM: That's William Littmann. WL: I teach architectural history at the California College of Art in Oakland and San Francisco.

RM: And we're walking up to what I think might be the greatest place in all of San Francisco. That few people have ever heard of. What was once considered the geographic center of the city.

WL: So here we come up, it's this kind of raised plinth RM: On top of mount olympus

WL: A massive stone pedestal that rises up to nothing.

RM: It's the base of a statue that isn't there. WL: Where once this twelve foot high broze statue stood on top of it.

RM: On a site that has some of the best views of the entire city.

WL: And the view is insane! It's a 360 view of the city. RM: The statue was called “Triumph of Light”

WL: It was a statue of this woman who looked a little like the Statue of Liberty. She was holding aloft a giant torch. In the other hand she had a piece of parchment, and below her was a crouched figure sort of reaching up to these two objects as if it was symbolizing man kind, reaching for light and liberty.

RM: It was errected in 1887 by then-developer and future mayor Adolf Sutro, as a symbol of liberty and progressivism.

WL: When Sutro dedicated the statue, in 1887 on Thanksgiving Day, he told the crowd “may the light shine from the torch of the goddess of liberty to inspire our citizens to good and noble deeds for the benefit of mankind.”

RM: It was supposed to stand forever, to be a timeless reminder.

WL: About the importance of liberty and civilzation and philanthropy.

RM: But it didn't last. WL: In the 1930s, people referring to it as “The Mystery Monument,” so obviously people have forgotten about Sutro and his goals. And then by the 40s there's discussion about removing it RM: After decades of neglect, sometime in the 1950s

WL: It just disappears. And people discuss it online- where it may have gone

RM: So no one knows.

WL: People really do come up to this hill, The same things that drew Sutro here draw dogwalkers and, you know, just urban walker that come up here. Maybe through these kinds of discussions we can actually have someone maybe decide to build a new statue. I mean, who knows what it would look like, though. Imagine the debates about how would you symbolize liberty and philanthropy.

RM: Yeah, I don't know if I would like to see anything else here. Does that make me weird?

WL: Okay. Then what we should have here is a little plaque telling people that there was once this beautiful sculpture to light, liberty, and philanthropy, and now its gone so that's what we need to work on. Although a sense of mystery is always good. You know, people look up and think “what could have been up there? What is missing?”

RM: 99% Invisible is about the stories of human-made objects and maybe, in this case, the absence of the object makes for a better story. A monument to learning and light and liberty that's missing is almost a more amazing monument that says more about us. WL: About just neglect, how a city forgets its past.

RM: 99% Invisible was produced by me, Roman Mars, with support from Lunar. It's a project of KALW, the American Institue of Architects San Francisco, and the Center for Archtiecture and design. Find out more and see pictures at 99percentinvisible.org

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99% Invisible-05- 99% Forgotten 99% Invisible-05- 99% Olvidado 99% Invisible-05- 99% Forgotten 99% Invisível-05- 99% Esquecido 99% Invisible-05- 99% Forgotten 99% 隐形-05- 99% 被遗忘

Roman Mars (RM): This is 99% Invisible. I'm Roman Mars. RM: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone stand in the desert. ||||senza tronco||||||| РМ: Две огромные каменные ноги без туловища стоят в пустыне.

William Littmann (WL):In Osymandias

RM: The poem by Percy Shelley

WL:The poem is about a historic monument of a figure

RM: A shattered visage lies ||frantumato|viso|giace

WL:Who has a wrinkled lip and a sneer of cold command. ||||rugoso||||sorriso beffardo|||comando freddo ВЛ: У которого сморщенная губа и холодная властная ухмылка. The statue points to all the works around him and the poem read “My name is Osymandias, king of kings.” Die Statue weist auf alle Werke um ihn herum hin und das Gedicht lautet „Mein Name ist Osymandias, König der Könige“. Статуя указывает на все работы вокруг него, а стихотворение гласит: «Меня зовут Осимандиас, царь царей».

RM: Look upon my works, ye mighty and despair. ||||||potenti||disperazione RM: Patrzcie na moje uczynki, potężni i rozpacz. РМ: Взгляните на мои дела, могучие и отчаянные.

WL: And the rest of the poem says that all of the works that the statue is pointing to have disappeared. |||il resto||||||||||||||che indica||| ||||||poema|||||||||||||| WL: Und der Rest des Gedichts besagt, dass alle Werke, auf die die Statue hinweist, verschwunden sind.

RM: Nothing besides remains. ||oltre| ||além de|restante RM: Nichts anderes bleibt übrig.

WL: So it's really a poem about – that the figure remains but everything around it has disappeared. ВЛ: Так что на самом деле это стихотворение о том, что фигура осталась, но все вокруг нее исчезло. Everything that the figure and the statue was supposed to be proud of. ||||||statua|||||| Alles, worauf die Figur und die Statue stolz sein sollten. Все то, чем должны были гордиться фигура и статуя.

RM: But this is about another former statue. That once stood high above San Francisco. ||stava|||| ||ficou de pé||acima de||

WL: This is kind of the inverse. ||||||inverso WL: Это как бы наоборот. All of the things around it, all of the landscape that the statue was supposed to sort of urge to liberty and philanthropy, that's all still here. ||||||||||||||||||incitare|||||||| |||||||||paisagem|||||||||inspirar||||filantropia|||| All die Dinge um ihn herum, die ganze Landschaft, die die Statue irgendwie zu Freiheit und Philanthropie drängen sollte, das alles ist noch da. Все вещи вокруг нее, весь пейзаж, который статуя должна была призывать к свободе и филантропии, все это все еще здесь. In San Francisco, what the statue was dedicated to improving is there but the statue its self has disappeared.

RM: That's William Littmann. WL: I teach architectural history at the California College of Art in Oakland and San Francisco.

RM: And we're walking up to what I think might be the greatest place in all of San Francisco. That few people have ever heard of. What was once considered the geographic center of the city. Was einst als geografisches Zentrum der Stadt galt.

WL: So here we come up, it's this kind of raised plinth |||||||||||base piattaforma WL: Also hier kommen wir hoch, es ist diese Art von erhöhtem Sockel WL: Итак, мы подошли к такому приподнятому плинтусу. RM: On top of mount olympus RM: Auf dem Olymp

WL: A massive stone pedestal that rises up to nothing. ||||podio||si alza|||nulla ||massivo||||||| WL: массивный каменный пьедестал, который возвышается до нуля.

RM: It's the base of a statue that isn't there. РМ: Это основание статуи, которой нет. WL: Where once this twelve foot high broze statue stood on top of it. ВЛ: Там, где когда-то на вершине стояла эта двенадцатифутовая бронзовая статуя.

RM: On a site that has some of the best views of the entire city. ||||||||||vistas|||toda a| РМ: На сайте, с которого открывается один из лучших видов на весь город.

WL: And the view is insane! It's a 360 view of the city. RM: The statue was called “Triumph of Light”

WL: It was a statue of this woman who looked a little like the Statue of Liberty. She was holding aloft a giant torch. |||in alto||| ||erguendo|em alto|||tocha gigante In the other hand she had a piece of parchment, and below her was a crouched figure sort of reaching up to these two objects as if it was symbolizing man kind, reaching for light and liberty. |||||||||pergamena||||||accovacciato||||||||||||||||||||| |||||||||pergaminho||||||agachada||||alcançando||||||||||||||||| In der anderen Hand hatte sie ein Stück Pergament, und unter ihr war eine geduckte Figur, die sich nach diesen beiden Objekten streckte, als ob sie die Menschheit symbolisieren würde, die nach Licht und Freiheit greift.

RM: It was errected in 1887 by then-developer and future mayor Adolf Sutro, as a symbol of liberty and progressivism. |||erguido||||desenvolvedor|||||||||||| RM: Es wurde 1887 vom damaligen Bauunternehmer und späteren Bürgermeister Adolf Sutro als Symbol für Freiheit und Fortschrittlichkeit errichtet.

WL: When Sutro dedicated the statue, in 1887 on Thanksgiving Day, he told the crowd “may the light shine from the torch of the goddess of liberty to inspire our citizens to good and noble deeds for the benefit of mankind.” |||||||||||||folla||||brillare||||||dea|||||||||||azioni nobili|||||umanità ||||||||Ação de Graças|||||multidão||||brilhe||||||||||||cidadãos||||nobres ações|ações nobres|||benefício da humanidade||a humanidade WL: Als Sutro die Statue 1887 am Erntedankfest einweihte, sagte er der Menge: „Möge das Licht von der Fackel der Freiheitsgöttin scheinen, um unsere Bürger zu guten und edlen Taten zum Wohle der Menschheit zu inspirieren.“

RM: It was supposed to stand forever, to be a timeless reminder. |||||permanecer|||||eterno|lembrança eterna

WL: About the importance of liberty and civilzation and philanthropy.

RM: But it didn't last. RM: Aber es dauerte nicht. WL: In the 1930s, people referring to it as “The Mystery Monument,” so obviously people have forgotten about Sutro and his goals. And then by the 40s there's discussion about removing it ||||||||remover isso| RM: After decades of neglect, sometime in the 1950s ||||trascuratezza|||| ||||negligência||||

WL: It just disappears. And people discuss it online- where it may have gone |||||||||ido embora Und die Leute diskutieren online darüber – wohin es gegangen sein könnte

RM: So no one knows.

WL: People really do come up to this hill, The same things that drew Sutro here draw dogwalkers and, you know, just urban walker that come up here. |||||||||||||attirarono|||||||||||||| ||||||||colina|||||atraíram|||atraem|||||||caminhantes urbanos|||| WL: Die Leute kommen wirklich auf diesen Hügel. Die gleichen Dinge, die Sutro hierher gezogen haben, ziehen Hundespaziergänger an und, wissen Sie, einfach Stadtspaziergänger, die hier heraufkommen. Maybe through these kinds of discussions we can actually have someone maybe decide to build a new statue. I mean, who knows what it would look like, though. Imagine the debates about how would you symbolize liberty and philanthropy.

RM: Yeah, I don't know if I would like to see anything else here. Does that make me weird? ||||strano

WL: Okay. Then what we should have here is a little plaque telling people that there was once this beautiful sculpture to light, liberty, and philanthropy, and now its gone so that's what we need to work on. |||||||||targa||||||una volta|||||||||||||||||||| |||||||||placa comemorativa|informando||||||||||||||||||||||||| Although a sense of mystery is always good. embora||||||| You know, people look up and think “what could have been up there? What is missing?”

RM: 99% Invisible is about the stories of human-made objects and maybe, in this case, the absence of the object makes for a better story. A monument to learning and light and liberty that's missing is almost a more amazing monument that says more about us. WL: About just neglect, how a city forgets its past. |||||||dimentica|| WL: Über die Vernachlässigung, wie eine Stadt ihre Vergangenheit vergisst.

RM: 99% Invisible was produced by me, Roman Mars, with support from Lunar. It's a project of KALW, the American Institue of Architects San Francisco, and the Center for Archtiecture and design. Find out more and see pictures at 99percentinvisible.org