June 20, 2011

Farewell

Of all the mementos and historical artifacts in the "Rizal in Ateneo, Ateneo in Rizal" exhibit (see yesterday's post), this small, unassuming alcohol burner caught my fancy the most. The day before his execution on December 30, 1896, Jose Rizal was visited in prison by his mother, sisters and nephews and he whispered to his sister Trinidad that there was something hidden inside the burner. When it was given to his family, they discovered a folded piece of paper on which a poem was handwritten by Rizal. Untitled and unsigned, it is known popularly as "Mi Ultimo Adios" (My Last Farewell). The images in the background are of a replica of Rizal's prison cell inside the Rizal Shrine in Fort Santiago, Intramuros. The alcohol burner is on loan to the Ateneo Art Gallery from the family of Estanislao Herbosa, a nephew of Jose Rizal from his sister Lucia.

alcohol burner where Jose Rizal's Mi Ultimo Adios was found

For those interested in reading the poem, here are a few links:

23 comments:

Olivier said...

merci pour ce bout de l'histoire de ton pays, c'est intéressant.

brattcat said...

what a story!

Montreal Photo Daily said...

Fabulous post... great story.
Have a nice day!

Leif Hagen said...

Quite an interesting artifact! Hope you'll have a good start to your week!
Cheerio, Hilda!

Tamera said...

I remember visiting Fort Santiago as a child. I thought it was grim and scary!

Layrayski said...

I'm happy I was able to visit intramuros. :) There was letter on one of his shoes also, right?

Photo Cache said...

a great post. i didn't realize the lamp was this big. obviously i haven't been to the intramuros.

i remember that poem. we had to learn that by heart in spanish class and have to recite stanza.

Chattahoochee Valley Daily said...

Interesting ...

B i r g i t t a said...

Hilda this was a pretty but sad story I am glad to hear about it - thanks for sharing!

Louis la Vache said...

Fascinating, Hilda.
;-D

Oakland Daily Photo said...

Thanks for the education. I enjoyed comparing the translations of Rizal's farewell poem. Quite a deifference.

Kaori said...

Hi Hilda! Hope you are well. This is a very interesting post. I don't know if I could write such a poem when facing death...but then I can't write a poem anyway so I guess it wouldn't matter :-)

Anonymous said...

What a sad story. It is unimaginable really.

lunarossa said...

So touching and beautiful, Hilda. Although well translated, the Spanish original really gets you to his heart. Thanks for posting this. Hope you are well. Ciao. A.

Ken Mac said...

I'm glad your'e not saying farewell!

Lucas Kain said...

Indeed, my heart froze for a second there. But we haven't heard from you in a month! Don't leave us. :(

___
Story telecom

PJ said...

Don't scare me like that!

Layrayski said...

Hilda, is there a reason you titled your last post farewell?

Oakland Daily Photo said...

Hey, Hilda,
We're still missing you. Please let us know what's going on. Hope you're planning on returning to your blog.
Carolyn

Stevenson Q said...

I miss you so much Hilda! I hope you will be back very soon! We're all waiting for your next post! God Bless you and be safe! Sunod Sunod ang Bagyo :(

Steven^^

Buck said...

A sad story, but I'm glad to learn it. Such deep meaning from something simple.

Anonymous said...

Very atmospheric... in every way!

alex said...

hope all is well.