The of Valle de los Caidos cupola by the artist Santiago Padros depicting a rightwing catholic ideology

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For the Attention of Annabelle Whitestone, Sunday Telegraph Travel Section. The mosaic in the Basilica of the Valle de los Caídos (Valley of the Fallen) the monument to the war dead in the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). Designed by Santiago Padrós, with over 5 million pieces of mosaic between 1950-53. Apparently the faces were taken from people the designer sketched on the metro and each piece was laid out in Madrid's Teatro Real so the artist could look down from the circle and see how the design appeared from a distance. The mosaic represents God, in the centre, and on the 4 sides, martyred Spanish saints, Spanish saints that died from natural causes, civilian victims from the Spanish civil war and the nationalist war dead. The mosaic is 42m high and wide. Valle de los Caídos is situated 40 miles north of Madrid in the mountains of Guadarrama.

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Size: 5025px × 3342px
Location: Guadarrama Spain
Photo credit: © reppans / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No

Keywords: cupola, mosaic, padros, santiago