Rabindranath Tagore Monument, Azcapotzalco

The Rabindranath Tagore Monument stands at the intersection of the Calzada de Camarones and the Calle Salónica, which is also the intersection of four important Azcapotzalco neighborhoods. To the south is the important Colonia Clavería and north along Camarones is the original settlement of Santa María Malinalco.

• Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941) was a Bengali poet, writer, composer, essayist, and painter. He’s best remembered in the West for being the first non-European to win the Nobel Prize for Literature. He achieved this in 1913. Tagore grew up in a family steeped in the Bengali Renaissance which is generally said to have lasted from the late 18th century through to the early 20th. Tagore introduced the use of colloquial language and new prose and verse forms to Bengali literature. He’s often credited with introducing Indian culture to the West and he remains very much a national hero of India and Bangladesh.

The sculpture, by artist K.C. Paul, was dedicated in August of 2000. On the base of the monument is a plaque with some of Tagore’s most memorable verse.

The Calzada de Camarones runs northwest and southeast across much of Azcapotzalco. It’s part of an important new biking corridor connecting Santa Maria la Ribera with the Center of Azcapotzalco. The avenue begins in the southeast at the Monument to the Proletarian Family right next to the San Salvador de las Flores Church.