In 1988, the artist Hans Haacke was invited to participate in the annual Styrian Autumn Festival's exhibition Bezugspunkte 38/88 (Points of Reference 38/88) curated by Werner Fenz in Graz, Austria. The “38/88” referenced in the exhibition’s title referred to the 50th anniversary of Hitler's annexation of Austria. For the exhibition, international artists were invited to create works in public areas in Graz associated with the Nazi regime, including the local Gestapo headquarters, city hall, and squares where Nazi rallies had been held.

Haacke chose the square at the south end of Herrengasse where, on July 25, 1938, a Nazi rally had been held. He constructed a replica of the Nazi obelisk made in 1938 that covered an existing sculpture, the 17th century Mariensäule (Column of the Virgin Mary). Haacke included the eagle, swastika and the phrase “Und Ihr habt doch gesiegt” (And You Were Victorious After All) from the original Nazi obelisk. This phrase was a reference to the 1934 failed Nazi putsch which the 1938 rally commemorated (and also the title of Haacke’s sculpture). In addition, Haacke added a text around the base of the sculpture which read: “The Vanquished of Styria: 300 Gypsies killed, 2,500 Jews killed, 8,000 political prisoners killed or died in detention, 9,000 civilians killed in the war, 12,000 missing, 27,900 soldiers killed.”

About a week before the exhibition’s closing, on November 2, 1988, the Haacke sculpture was fire bombed, despite the presence of a nearby security guard. Much of the fabric and the top of the obelisk was burned, and the Mariensäule inside was damaged. The police caught the perpetrators—a 36 year old neo-Nazi who threw the bomb, and a 67 year old Nazi who instigated it—and they were sentenced to serve 2 ½ and 1 ½ year prison terms.