Monument to the Carnic Porters in Timau

When war breaks out, people often speak of armies on the battlefield, of commanders, and of the soldiers who distinguished themselves on the front line. Far too often, however, the civilian population—those far from the front or exempt from military service—is forgotten and pushed into the background. Yet war is a total event that affects the entire population, above all through its devastating consequences.

There are cases, however, in which ordinary people became central figures and continued to be remembered many years later. One emblematic example is that of the Carnic porters: the women of Carnia—together with others from the valleys of the Julian Alps and Cadore—who carried food and military supplies to the soldiers fighting on the Alpine front, often very close to the front line itself. On 5 July 1992, the municipality of Paluzza inaugurated in the square of Timau a monument by the sculptor Antonio Tinaglia dedicated to these porters, and in particular to Maria Plozner Mentil, the porter who was struck by enemy fire near Casera Malpasso on 15 February 1916 and later died of her wounds.

The monument consists of a large rectangular bronze slab bearing a bas-relief that depicts the dramatic moment in which Maria is struck. Two companions, carrying their characteristic baskets, rush to assist her, while a third points toward the place from which the shot was fired. The slab appears suspended between triangular concrete elements evoking both the surrounding mountains and the trajectory of the bullet. The entire complex stands upon a broad circular base. On 23 July 2011, during the celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of Italian unification, the monument was officially declared a national memorial.