Forget Your Past - Communist Era Monuments in Bulgaria, 2009-2012

Monument to the Soviet army

The project "Forget Your Past" traces the fate of the most important communist-era monuments in Bulgaria, from their construction to this day.

The title is borrowed from graffiti written over the entrance of the Memorial House of the Bulgarian Communist Party at mount Buzludja, which poignantly illustrates the fate of the communist-era monuments in Bulgaria.Conceived as expressions of national pride and reverence, most of them today are looted and neglected. Whether they commemorate the feats of the Soviet Army, or the April Uprising of 1876 against the ottoman rule, they all share a common fate – to be silent symbols of a forgotten past.


Monument to the Soviet Army, Burgas, 1954

Monument to the Soviet army


Monument to the Soviet army


Monument to the Soviet Army, Sofia, 1954

Monument to the Soviet army


Monument to the Soviet army

Monument to the Soviet Army, Plovdiv, 1957

Monument to the Soviet army


Monument to the Soviet army


Monument to the Resistance, Vidin, 1963

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Knoll of Fraternity Memorial Complex, Plovdiv, 1974

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Monument to the Three Generations, Peroushtitsa, 1976

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Apriltsi Memorial Complex, Panagyurishte, 1976

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Defenders of Stara Zagora Memorial Complex, 1977

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Monument Park to Bulgarian-Soviet Friendship, Varna, 1978

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Banner of Peace Monument, Sofia, 1979

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Memorial House of the Bulgarian Communist Party, Buzludja, 1981  

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Memorial Complex to the Founders of the Bulgarian State, Shoumen, 1981

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


1 300 Years of Bulgaria Monument, Sofia, 1981

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance


Pantheon of the Heroes of the Serbo-Bulgarian War of 1885, Gurgulyat, 1986

Monument of the Resistance


Monument of the Resistance