Monumento a la Virgen de la Paz

Monumento a la Virgen de la Paz
ArtistManuel de la Fuente,[1]
Rosendo Camargo
Year1983[2]
TypeModern architecture; concrete and steel
Dimensions46.72 metres (153.3 ft) high[3]
LocationTrujillo, Trujillo, Venezuela

The Monumento a la Virgen de la Paz is a colossal statue honoring Mary. Completely made out of concrete, it is located 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) southwest of the city of Trujillo in Venezuela.[4] At 46.72 metres (153.3 ft) tall it is the 48th tallest statue in the world, the tallest statue in South America and the second-tallest in the Americas,[5][a] the fourth-tallest statue depicting a woman in the world, and the second tallest statue of Mary in the world. It is 16 metres (52 ft) across, with a base that is 18 metres (59 ft) deep, and weighs 1,200 tonnes.[5]

It was designed by the Spanish-Venezuelan sculptor Manuel de la Fuente and opened on 21 December 1983 by President Luis Herrera Campins.[7] The monument stands at about 1,600 metres (5,200 ft) above sea level,[8] in the region named Peña de la Virgen — where it is said that the virgin appeared in the year 1570. From the monument there are spectacular panoramic views of the region:[9] on a clear day, one can see all of the state of Trujillo, parts of the Sierra Nevada de Mérida, and the south coast of Lake Maracaibo.[10]

Since 1568 the virgin of Nuestra Señora de la Paz (Our Lady of Peace) has been the spiritual patron of Trujillo; since 1960 she has been the patron of this diocese, as well.[4] The dove in the statue's right hand symbolizes the responsibility of the presidency of Venezuela to make peace across the land.[11] For many years the statue was administered through a private foundation, before passing to the directorship of the government of the state of Trujillo.

Despite its colossal size and the importance of its commemorative symbolism of the patron saint of the state, the monument is one of the least visited tourist spots in Trujillo and in Venezuela. In Easter 2010 the Trujillo government reported 11,000 visitors to the monument, while the José Gregorio Hernández sanctuary received close to 80,000 visits, and the traditional way of the cross in the town of Tostós was visited by approximately 57,000 tourists.

  1. ^ Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Los Ándes. "Monumento Virgen de la Paz" (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 May 2010.
  2. ^ Boletín del Archivo General de la Nación (in Spanish). Archivo General de la Nación. 1981. pp. 112–113.
  3. ^ El Nacional (5 March 2010). "Murió el escultor Manuel de la Fuente, creador de la Virgen de la Paz" (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 May 2010.
  4. ^ a b Perozo, Mario Briceño (1984). Historia del Estado Trujillo (in Spanish). Academia Nacional de la Historia. pp. 309–310.
  5. ^ a b Revista Internacional de Turismo y Negocios: ABC Internacional. "Manuel de la Fuente" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 15 January 2010. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
  6. ^ "Guerrero Chimalli | Chimalhuacán, Estado de México, edemx.com". www.edemx.com. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  7. ^ Hernández Caballero, Serafín (2006). Colofón siglo XX: albores siglo XXI. Volumen 4 de Historia global de Venezuela: desde los orígenes hasta la actualidad (s. XXI) (in Spanish). Ed. Globe. ISBN 9806427173.
  8. ^ Dydyński, Krzysztof (1994). Venezuela: a Lonely planet travel survival kit (in Spanish). Lonely Planet Publications. p. 210. ISBN 0864422296.
  9. ^ Nuevo mundo, Números 115-119 (in Spanish). Hermanos Menores Capuchinos de Venezuela. 1984. pp. 51–52.
  10. ^ Kohnstamm, Thomas; Sandra Bao, Beth Kohn, Jens Porup y Daniel C. Schechter (2006). Lonely Planet Venezuela (in Spanish) (5ta ed.). Lonely Planet. p. 207. ISBN 1741045452.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ Castañón, José Manuel (2001). Cuba: hablo contigo, sigo hablando contigo (in Spanish). IEPALA Editorial. pp. 89–90. ISBN 8489743134.


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