Prešov to have the biggest Jesus

BY the end of 2010, the world's tallest statue of Jesus Christ could be erected in Prešov.

BY the end of 2010, the world's tallest statue of Jesus Christ could be erected in Prešov.

The controversy does not stem from the idea itself, or the location, but rather from the statue's size. A similar Christian symbol that overlooks Rio de Janeiro, Brazil from a pedestal is 30 metres tall. Prešov's statue will measure 33 metres, the Sme daily wrote.

Prešov mayor Pavol Hagyari came up with the idea. He said that the statue's height symbolises the important years in Christ's life - his age, when he was crucified, when he died and was resurrected.

"When I lived in Bratislava, I was constantly irritated by that twelve-metre statue of a Soviet soldier at Slavín," Hagyari said. "As early as then, sculptor Martin Palo and I started thinking about a monument that would symbolise our Christian values - faith, love, understanding."

Hagyari admitted that the sculpture's size is controversial and could provoke debate among residents and experts, but sees no reason why there shouldn't be a work of art that draws attention to the town and the entire region.

"The Eiffel Tower in Paris was controversial, too," the mayor said. "But today, it is the very symbol of this city and all of France."

Total costs of the project are assessed to amount to Sk15 million.

Top stories

News digest: Don't forget- clocks go forward on Sunday

More money from Brussels, US helicopters for Slovakia, and Bratislava airport's warning against fake websites.


5 h
Filip Toška holding chard in the hydroponic Hausnatura farm.

How a Mayan doomsday prophecy took a Slovak to hi-tech agriculture

Hydroponic farm run out of former telephone exchange.


9. mar
A Lutheran priest outside the Lutheran High School in Tisovec in 2007.

US teachers not rushing to teach English in Slovakia due to war

Dozens of Americans taught Slovak students in Tisovec in the past, but the local school is now struggling to find teachers from overseas.


21. mar
PM Eduard Heger announces his new political party, Demokrati, on March 7, 2023.

With his new party, Slovak PM embarks on a mission to unify

After two years as premier of an OĽaNO-led government, Eduard Heger is leaving the populist movement of Igor Matovič and hopes to establish a new political culture in Slovakia.


20. mar
SkryťClose ad