Monument Gaspard-Michel Pagani - Woubrechtegem

The Pagani Column is located on the Sacred Heart Square in Woubrechtegem, opposite the Saint Martin Church .

It is a slender stone column rising from a square base. At the top of the column is a capital , an architectural element that marks the transition between the column and the superstructure. The column is decorated with symbols of knowledge and science , such as a geometric measuring instrument , which refers to Pagani's profession as a mathematician and professor.

Gaspard-Michel Pagani (1796–1855) was an Italian-Swiss mathematician and professor who played an important role in the development of mathematics in Belgium during the 19th century.

Pagani studied at the University of Turin and obtained the degrees of civil engineer and hydraulic engineer in 1816 and 1817. As a supporter of Italian independence, he had to leave his homeland and settled in Brussels in 1822 as a political refugee.

Pagani published numerous works on subjects such as mechanics , heat transfer, dynamics, optics and mathematical analysis. Pagani spent his last years in Woubrechtegem, where his wife had a castle. He died in 1855. In the 19th century it was customary to erect an obelisk or column in honour of important persons. Such a monument often stood for an eternal memory .

Willem Vandenameele