Buenos Aires and the Spaniard’s Monument Story (Monumento de los Espanoles)

The Spaniard’s Monument is a marble memorial in the Palermo District in Buenos Aires – 24.5 meters high, created in marble from Carrara, bronze and brass.

In Spanish “El Monumento de los Españoles” or Spaniard’s monument, got its name because it was a gift from the Spanish community. The top sculpture represents the “Republic” and it was built by sculptor Agustín Querol y Subirats.

This is one of the most beautiful monuments in Buenos Aires. Not only for its magnificence, but also for its location in the intersection of two wide boulevards: Libertador Ave or Avenue del Libertador and Sarmiento Avenue in the Palermo neighborhood.

The marble monument’s real name is “Magna Carta and the Four Argentine Regions”, but everybody knows it as “El monumento de los Españoles.” “El monumento a los Españoles” or The Spaniard’s Monument. It was donated in 1910 by the Spanish community for the centenary of the May Revolution or Argentina’s Independence first centennial.

Description of the Marble Monument

Atop the Carrara marble masterpiece you can see a feminine figure that represents the “Constitution” or Carta Magna. On the base, on each side, there’s the four Argentinean regions in bronze: La Plata, Chaco, the Pampas and the Andes.

You can read part of the Preamble of the Argentinean Constitution on one of its sides:

“And ensure the benefits of freedom for us, for our posterity and for all men in the world who want to live on Argentine soil”.

But the construction of this masterpiece underwent several problems that led to the infamous Spaniard’s monument story of death.

The Spaniard’s Monument Story – Buenos Aires – Monumento a los Españoles

The Spaniard’s Monument Story of Death

The first sculptor and winner of the design contest, the Catalonian Agustin Querol Subirats, died in 1909. And his creation had to be continued by other artists, Cipriano Folgueras Doiztúa y Antonio Moliné.

Cipriano Folgueras also passed away shortly after taking over the monument’s construction.

But Moliné suffered additional delays as there was a strike “cioppero” in Carrara, Italy, where the marble was sourced at the time.

The work was further delayed when the Spanish ship that was carrying the bronze pieces needed for its construction sunk in March, 1916 near the Brazilian coast. 450 people on board died and replicas had to be ordered from Spain. They were finished by 1918, delaying it by a few more years.

Finally, the monument was inaugurated on May 25, 1927. Its construction span 17 years.

There are many more tales and mysteries surrounding the story of this monument. If you are interested in learning its secret history join us on one of our Buenos Aires Secrets Tours.