The Pity of it All – The Yugoslav Room, Cathedral of Learning, University of Pittsburgh, Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Yugoslavia as a country is gone; one of the few reminders of the multinational country that once was is this classroom in the Cathedral of Learning.

The walls and ceiling of the Yugoslav room are of Slavonian oak handcarved with Slavonic hearts and other traditional motifs. The young oak tree must force its way through dense volcanic soil and develops a fine grain, especially good for notch carving. All of this work was done in Yugoslavia using small pocket knives.

On the wall opposite the windows is a panel depicting the coat of arms of pre-war Yugoslavia: a double-headed eagle symbolizing the Western Empire of Rome and the Eastern Byzantine Empire which influence this country. The state universities of Belgrade, Llubljana and Zagreb with their founding dates are carved beneath it.