ANTONIO V. FIGUEROA FAST BACKWARD

that parts on the right side of the temple, Rizal stands erect in his trademark greatcoat, his body facing towards the provincial and municipal halls.

The monument, removed from its pedestal in the late 1950s, has a lower base with three steps that afford ease during wreath-laying rites. There were two layers separating the lower base from the landing of the second base, where the die rests.

On both sides of the lower base were circular features for flowers and ornamentals. On the die, which is at the center between the lower platform and the plinth, are letters, probably the year of erection, in Roman alphabets, or most likely the marker of the monument.

Standing on the upper part of the lower base are eight mounted bowls or vases equally distributed around the monument to form an octagon. These are shaped from floral petals design. Meanwhile, between the cap and the plinth (the upper section of the die) are curved designs with ends connecting to form perfect squares around the platform where the monu-ment stands.

Interestingly, the hunt for the historical Rizal monument has become a curiosity for those who want to see the original statue. Reports of the sculpture being moved to the cities of Mati and Cotabato persist, but the published pictures do not fit the suspected monuments.

The move to institutionalize the martyrdom of Rizal is not an American initiative. As ear-ly as December 20, 1898, then-president Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo already issued a proclama-tion declaring De-