Humanity’s fight against disease finds its expression in monuments that serve as enduring historical markers. They document medical progress and recognize those who devoted their lives to significant advances.
Throughout history, civilizations erected temples for sacred healing rituals. The ancient Greeks dedicated temples to Asclepius where patients spent nights in hope of receiving divine guidance on healing their diseases. The Epidaurus and Kos ruins of these temples reflect integrated religious beliefs with contemporary scientific understanding.
The Middle Ages witnessed the establishment of medical facilities in both the Western European and Islamic worlds. Institutions such as the Hotel-Dieu in Paris and the Bimaristan in Damascus focused on providing patient care. Central European regions experienced a surge of plague columns during the Baroque period from the 1600s to 1700s. These structures, also known as Marian, Pest, or Holy Trinity columns, functioned as community expressions of gratitude for surviving the plague and served as protection against future pandemics. Among the most well-known plague columns stands the Vienna Plague Column on Graben Street, erected after a great plague in 1679. A tour-de-force of sculptural magnificence, the massive Holy Trinity column in Olomouc, Czech Republic, built between 1716–1754, today continues to add beauty to the central square (Fig. 1).
The Enlightenment brought about the construction of monuments that honored important scientific discoveries. Edward Jenner’s smallpox vaccination experiments at the Jenner Hut in Berkeley, England, receive commemoration alongside the Louis Pasteur laboratory in Paris. The 19th and 20th centuries also brought forth monuments, public squares, and hospital gardens recognizing the contributions of other healthcare workers such as pioneering surgeon Joseph Lister and nursing innovator Florence Nightingale. The Nightingale Chapel at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London commemorates the origins of nursing as a profession.
The medical monuments that exist today were established because of worldwide health crises. The AIDS Memorial Quilt began featuring its massive textile artwork in 1985 to remember the victims of HIV/AIDS. This “soft monument” stands as an important communal response to medical tragedy despite being made of materials other than stone or metal. Memorial sculptures honor tuberculosis sanatorium victims, as well as those who suffered from cholera outbreaks and pandemic influenza, to maintain public awareness of these health crises.
Modern medical monuments challenge conventional architectural conventions in their designs. An enormous steel sculpture known as The Cell stands in Hyde Park, London, representing immune system cells fighting HIV. Its abstract representation aligns with our contemporary medical knowledge yet enables laypeople to grasp difficult scientific information. The global COVID-19 Monument of Honor, Remembrance, and Resilience being built in Chicago will serve as a marker for worldwide pandemic experiences (Fig. 2). The monument incorporates a visual and philosophical meaning of the dandelion together with the CDC illustration of the COVID-19 virus through five hybrid sculptures, creating a bouquet of dignity and reflection.
Digital memorials now exist as virtual tributes to those who lost their lives battling COVID-19. These virtual memorials show a new approach to recognizing both medical sacrifices and achievements in history. The Chicago COVID-19 Monument includes a digital memorial which enables individuals to add images and text to honor deceased loved ones and vital pandemic workers who risked their lives to serve others (covidmemorialmonument.org). These various monuments commemorate tragedies, triumphs, and challenges, honoring individual medical accomplishments while emphasizing the ongoing work of many generations.