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On February 21, 1919, Kurt Eisner—Bavaria's first prime minister after the abolition of the monarchy—was murdered by an anti-Semite at the corner of Kardinal-Faulhaber-Straße and Promenadeplatz. Since 1989, an unusual monument in the pavement commemorated the assassination. Designed by Erika Maria Lankes, the piece shows the outline of dead body—much like a crime scene—embossed on a steel plate. Despite the originality of the monument, many local politicians called for a more representative site that would commemorate the important historical figure, who, for example, was the first to grant women the right to vote in Germany. After many years of dispute on how the new memorial should look like, a new sculpture has been installed at Oberanger.
The abstract glass cube by Munich artist Rotraud Fischer is accessible. A black whole painted on the glass reminds the beholder of the assassination, while an Eisner quote has been engraved into the glass. Proponents of the new design deem the glass construction a modern interpretation of commemoration instead of outdated busts or sculptures. Critics, however, think the design has no distinct feature and ties in with the current "latte macchiato aesthetics". In their opinion, the cube could also be another item of random street furniture suiting the taste of the new nearby owners of luxury apartments. Also Eisner's quote: "Jedes Menschen Leben soll heilig sein" (The life of every human being should be sacred) may sound philanthropic in general, but is entirely taken out of its historical and political context. Nevertheless, the effort to establish a new memorial site has been made and perhaps a continuing dispute on the monument will keep Eisner's commemoration more alive than a sculpture that everybody could agree on.
