Statue of Marshall Floriano
Before it became widely known as “Cinelândia” in the 1930s, the square, which for years housed a complex of street cinemas, was officially named Praça Floriano Peixoto. The square was inaugurated during the major urban works carried out by Mayor Pereira Passos and in 1910 a large statue commemorating Brazil’s second president, Marshal Floriano Peixoto, who governed the country from 1891 to 1894 was installed there.
Marc Ferrez. Monument of Marshall Floriano, 1915. Gilberto Ferrez Collection. Instituto Moreira Salles.
The construction of the monument was decided by a public competition held in 1904 by the Marshal Floriano Peixoto Celebration Committee. The competition, presided over by Major Agostinho Raimundo Gomes de Castro, required participants to be Brazilian and aligned with positivist and Florianist principles. Although Floriano Peixoto was not a staunch positivist, his image as the “Consolidator of the Republic” brought Florianists closer to the positivist doctrine, which also advocated for strong and moralistic governance.
The monument was designed by the painter Eduardo Sá who won the public competition and was unveiled on April 21, 1910, the anniversary of the death of Tiradentes, who was elevated to the status of martyr and national hero by the Republican government. It was built in Paris. The monument features a tall needle-shaped central column, made of Brazilian granite, with high-relief details representing Floriano’s collaborators in the Republican endeavor: General Gomes Carneiro, Admiral Jerônimo Gonçalves, General Fonseca Ramos, and Júlio de Castilhos.
The height of the statue together with the column, is 17 meters. The statue was conceived as a patriotic symbol, to celebrate not only the image of Floriano, but principally the Republic, which had been established two decades earlier and was still in the process of consolidation.
Marc Ferrez. Monument of Marshall Floriano, 1910 (circa). Gilberto Ferrez collection. Instituto Moreira Salles.
At the top of the monument, there is a female figure offering a flower. The female figure symbolizes the Republic, while the flower represents fraternity, the nation’s future, and the hope for progress. This figure is depicted emerging from a national flag, alongside key figures in Republican history: José Bonifácio, Tiradentes, and Benjamin Constant. The children behind the flag symbolize future generations.
Reproduction: City Hall of Rio
Some important dates in Brazilian history are engraved on the base, such as the “discovery” and independence. Additionally, the following phrases are inscribed in Portuguese: “Sound politics is the daughter of morality and reason”; “Love as the principle, order as the foundation, and progress as the aim; and “Libertas quae sera tamen” the motto of the Inconfidência Mineira (an uprising in the state of Minas Gerais), meaning “Freedom, albeit tardy.”
The composition of the statue’s pedestal is rich in symbolism and intricate details. On its four sides, sculptures represent the foundations of Brazil’s socio-cultural identity: the Indigenous peoples, symbolizing the pre-discovery period; the Portuguese conquest, embodied by the figure of Caramuru; the Christian mission, represented by Father Anchieta; and the African contribution, depicted through scenes from Castro Alves’s book “A Cachoeira de Paulo Afonso.” These images construct a narrative of Brazil’s ethnic and cultural diversity, celebrating the ideal of national unity that the Republican government sought to promote. Floriano Peixoto is depicted in a commanding position, holding a sword and flanked by a female figure, a clear reference to his role as the “Consolidator of the Republic.”
Reproduction: City Hall of Rio
Beyond honoring Brazil’s second president, the monument serves as an allegorical representation of the Republican and Positivist ideals that shaped the early years of the Republic. The statue weaves a visual narrative of the formation of the Brazilian nation, intertwining historical episodes and iconic figures to construct a message of national unity and patriotism.
