Mavi Boncuk | The first public commemorative sculpture of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk at Sheridan Circle, Washington, DC USA with a dedication plaque for the 90th anniversary of Turkish Republic was unveiled on November, 19, 2013 to coincide with the 75th anniversary of his death. The 6' sculpture by Jefferey L.Hall depicts Ataturk in his late forties with a copy of a book in his hand, the Speech / Nutuk[1] , his analysis and views of the events between 1919-1927.Following the official printing in 1928 in Ceride-i Resmiye | Resmi Gazete | Official Gazette of the Republic of Turkey , first public version was published in Arabic letters and was banned due to this fact a year later after the alphabet reform and was only reprinted six years later. After a mere 3rd printing in 1938, new editions had to wait for the 1950 elections won by the Democratic Party.
[1] The Nutuk (Modern Turkish: Söylev; Speech) was a speech delivered by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk from 15 to 20 October 1927, at the second congress of Cumhuriyet Halk Partisi. The speech covered the events between the start of the Turkish War of Independence on May 19, 1919 and the foundation of the Republic of Turkey, in 1923. It is an important source for the study of Kemalism. It took thirty-six hours (on a 6 day span) to be read by Atatürk. Scholars have since identified the Speech as the foundation and model followed by Turkish historians for the official historiography of the Turkish Republic. About two-thirds of this speech consists of a series of heavy criticism against the following individuals: Kazım Kara Bekir Pasha, Rauf Bey (Orbay), Refet Pasha (Bele), Mersinli Cemal Pasha (Mersinli), Nureddin Pasha, Kara Vasıf Bey (Karakol), Zeki Bey (Kadirbeyoğlu), Celaleddin Arif Bey, Cafer Tayyar Pasha (Eğilmez), Ali Ihsan Pasha (Sâbis), Bekir Sami Bey (Kunduh), Rıza Nur Bey, Edhem Bey and his brothers, Selahaddin Bey (Köseoğlu), Hussein Avni Bey (Ulaş), Ali Rıza Pasha, Şerif Pasha, Ahmet Izzet Pasha (Furgaç), and Çürüksulu Mahmud Pasha.