26 m tall monument, Gift of the local Italian community, initiated by Antonio Devoto, a wealthy Italian immigrant, for the centennary of the Argentine independence. The monument is made of Carrara marble. The first stone was laid on 24 May 1910 and it was unveiled on 15 June 1921. It is divided into four parts:
Statue, 6.25 m high.
Column.
Allegories. - Around the column there are allegorical representations inspired by the verses of Medea by Sophocles: the Civilization, Science, the Genius and the Ocean. (an other source adds Faith and the New World.)
Base.
4. Base. On the sides are marble reliefs:
Columbus explains his plans to the Catholic kings.
Columbus return
In the fourth side a door leads to a 6 meter high room intended to house a museum, but never completed.
Inscription(s)
The square column is on the front side inscribed:
a cristoforo colombo
On the front side of the base: palos iii agosto mcdxcii.
1992 addition
Bronze plaque, with the text:
a cristoforo colombo genio maximo de los genoveses la federacion de entitades ligures en la argentina en recuerdo del quinto centenario del cumplimiento de su historia hazaña 1492 12 de octubre 1992
Arnoldo Zocchi (also Arnaldo) (Firenze/Florence 1862 - Roma 1940),
Italian sculptor, son of Emilio Zocchi
(Wikipedia).
Sources & Information
Photo: Hanneorla, 3 Dec 2005. See Hanneorla's photostream on Flickr.
General photo: Carlos Ruiz Badilla, 16 Feb 2008. See Carlos Ruiz Badilla's photos on Panoramio.
Stamp in collection Alex Borgogno.
Alex Borgogno, "Monuments of Columbus." Discovery! Journal of the Christopher Columbus Philatelic Society vol. 18, no. 1 (12 Jan. 2000): 1235.
Marcelo Renard y Adriana Van Deurs, El monumento a Colón de Zocchi. Estudios e Investigaciones (Instituto de Teoría e Historia del Arte "Julio E. Payró", Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad de Buenos Aires) Nº 5-1994. (not seen).
