Archaeologist Jacek Borkowski, who led the search, announced the find, calling it a "great success."
The remarkable discovery occurred on August 11, when a property owner decided to clear his overgrown plot. As an excavator operator worked, fragments of ceremonial armor from the monument, which dates back to 1724, began to emerge from the shallow ground. The operator quickly realized the significance of what he had uncovered and called in Borkowski.
"We found the central sculpture of the monument—three-quarters of the figure of Frederick William I, his torso. This is exactly what we were looking for," Borkowski told Polish state newswire PAP. The monument had vanished from Koszalin's Old Town Market Square at the end of World War II and was thought to be lost forever.
A treasure from the past
Borkowski, working pro bono under the supervision of the Provincial Office for the Protection of Monuments, is confident in the authenticity of the find.
"There is an extensive collection of postcards and photos from the Old Town Square, so the iconography related to this monument is incredibly rich. We even have images from the Museum of Architecture in Berlin showing the damage to this monument over time," he explained.
While the helmets and the head of the king have not yet been found, the discovery of the torso is a significant step forward. The fragments will now undergo preliminary cleaning and conservation by specialists before being transferred to the Museum in Koszalin.
Frederick William I, who ruled Prussia from 1713 to 1740, transformed it into a military power. The residents of Prussian Koszalin erected the monument in his honor, grateful for his help in rebuilding the city after a devastating fire in 1718.
(jh)
Source: PAP
