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The cenotaph, and
Ceremonial Space
(dedicated in
2009)Artist: Bob Haozous
Commissioning Agencies:
City of Tampa, Seminole Tribe of Florida
Location: On the Riverwalk in Cotanchobee / Fort Brooke Park
601 Old Water Street
(adjacent to Tampa Bay History Center)
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Artist's Concept
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| American Indians throughout the Western Hemisphere
have a unique and rightful connection to place. The cenotaph1
and Ceremonial Space in Cotanchobee2
/ Fort Brooke, marks such a place. Once a thriving center for
ancient indigenous chiefdoms until invasions in the 1500s by Spanish
explorers, and as an early 1800s refuge for Creek (now Seminole)
peoples in fleeing south from Alabama and Georgia from invasion by a
federal government, this space has been a nexus of alternating peace
and struggle. Heavy with the memories of federal wars on the
Seminole to force their 1824 removal out of Florida to territories
west, this place becomes a meaningful place ground. The cenotaph and
Ceremonial Space mark a time of peace and reconciliation with the
land as an indigenous place. In breaking the ground, Florida
Seminole Tribal member Bobby Henry spoke for ancestors buried there
and for his people today saying, “…[although painful] our history
should not be erased, rather we should remember, and learn from it,
and move forward.” |
 Site Description
Sixteen text panels that recount aspects of complex history at the
area around the former Fort Brooke form a serpentine path to
Ceremonial Space. The panels include historic texts, eye-witness
accounts to the history, the Seminole Song of Removal, maps, a
muster roll, and statements by contemporary historians.
The Foundation
A circle formed of bricks is separated into four quadrants, each
corresponding to one of the four cardinal directions and possessing
a culturally-appropriate color; yellow for the East, red for the
North, black for the West, and white for the South. These colors are
also found prominently in the flags of the Seminole Tribe of
Florida. It is a Miccosukee belief that life spins in a circle
starting in the east and moving to the north, west, and south.
Native peoples almost universally understand the directional colors. |
1
Literally, cenotaph means “remains buried elsewhere” and is
appropriate for this site as it recognizes the collective and
diverse experiences of the past as well as new beginnings.
2 Cotanchobee means where the big
water meets the land.
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more about the
Artist's Concept
Artist's Bio |
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