Romanian IT group Bitdefender has donated EUR 100,000 to the fundraising campaign the Romanian Government currently has ongoing out to raise the money needed to buy the famous Wisdom of the Earth (Cumintenia Pamantului) sculpture created by Constantin Brancusi.

This is one of the most significant financial contributions made by a private company so far. Romanian DIY retailer Dedeman also donated EUR 127,000 at the end of August.

Other companies that have got involved in the fundraising campaign are Carrefour, Uber, BRD, Enel, McDonald’s, Banca Transilvania, OMNIASIG, eMAG, UniCredit Bank Romania, Coresi, New Folder, Unlock, Media Trust, Telekom, Dexter Print, Humanitas, and Carturesti.

The Romanian Government has agreed to pay EUR 11 million for the sculpture. While EUR 5 million will come from the state budget, the Ministry of Culture should raise EUR 6 million in donations by the end of the month. By end-August, the authorities managed to raise almost EUR 700,000.

Those interested in contributing to the campaign can donate on the campaign’s dedicated website brancusiealmeu.ro, via text message at 8833, via bank transfer, or by “virtually buying” the sculpture on emag.ro, the biggest local online retailer.

Bogdan Grabowski, the lawyer who represents the sculpture’s current owners, recently said that the Ministry of Culture would pay EUR 11 million to buy the sculpture, regardless of the public subscription campaign’s result.

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Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com