Memorial 89 is a monument in front of the Ion Besoiu Cultural Center in Sibiu, dedicated to the Romanian Revolution of December 1989 and the people from Sibiu who were killed during the events.
The memorial was designed by architect Gheorghe Șeptilici, who himself took part in the revolution. Rather than creating a conventional statue, he built the composition around a series of symbolic forms intended to express sacrifice, faith, remembrance and victory.
At the center stands a cylindrical element representing an eternal flame, accompanied by a white cross and a curved marble slab whose veining forms a V for victory. The circular base is reached by three steps referring to the Holy Trinity, while twelve surrounding elements symbolize both the apostles and the passage of time. Seven vertical elements support the curved slab, which was conceived to recall the apse of a church.
The changing colors and natural veining of the marble are also part of the design, moving from pale tones and dark lines toward reddish shades intended to evoke the tension and bloodshed of December 1989. The memorial remains one of Sibiu’s main places of remembrance for the revolution, with commemorative ceremonies held here each December.
