La Paz has a large number of monuments, plaques, water fountains and busts distributed along the main streets of the city, roundabouts and squares. The figures in bronze, marble, stone or other materials, which are placed in plazas, avenues, streets and sometimes in the most improbable corners, can be viewed or photographed at anytime, despite the time of year. A few of the top landmarks of La Paz worth visiting are:
1) Monumento a Pedro Domingo Murillo
Sitting on the pedestal of the monument is the sculptured image of a woman who represents the Mother Country, and next to her is a soldier liberating a bronze lion that symbolizes bravery and victory.
While the monument was being transported from Italy, the cargo ship sank and some parts could not be recovered.
Over time, in the Plaza Murillo, marble female figures representing the seasons: Summer, Winter, Fall and Spring, were placed, plus the four muses of the arts: Painting, Architecture, Music and Sculpture.
Image Courtesy of Wikimedia and Sancho_panza
2) Pedro Domingo Murillo Memorial Plaque
The present memorial plaque commemorates the revolt which was on July 16, 1809 against the Governor General of the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata and it proclaims independence. In the autumn of the same year, troops loyal to the Spanish Crown concentrated near La Paz, and this is when many differences arose amongst the revolutionaries. As a result, some of them retired to the Yungas Valley, where shortly after, they were destroyed in a fierce battle. In December, Murillo was captured in the Zongo Valley - some miles away from La Paz.
Image Courtesy of Wikimedia and Alexson Scheppa Peisino
3) Fuente de Berenguela
In the late 19th century, the Plaza de Armas, also called the Market Square and, later, the Plaza 16 de Julio, was graced with a beautiful water fountain. Between 1890 and 1909 it was renovated, along with other sites and monuments of the city. It was called Fountain of Berengaria, after a man who went on a pilgrimage to various parts of the city. According to other sources from Neptune's Grotto of Lourdes, he arrived at the Paseo de la Alameda and finished his pilgrimage at the mound Sopocachi, where the fountain is situated today.
Image Courtesy of Flickr and Corey Leopold
4) Monumento a Gualberto Villaroel (1910-1946)
Gualberto Villaroel ruled Bolivia from 1943 to 1946. He was a politician with nationalistic tendencies and convictions, and a close associate of the Argentine leader Juan Peron. In 1946, a mob instigated by his opponents, made entrance to the presidential palace and then killed Villaroel. His lifeless body was hung from a lamppost near the entrance of the Palace. His monument is located in the Plaza Murillo.
5) El busto de Simón Bolívar
In the Plaza Murillo is another bust of the Liberator Simón Bolívar. General Simón Bolívar, the Liberator, struggled to liberate New Granada, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru and Upper Peru. During his arduous journey he collaborated with a Bolivian military group, which believed in his ideals, and that group was called La Gran Colombia. This group later identified itself with the hero and despite some former hostilities, he became the general of Bolivia.
Image Courtesy of Wikimedia and SajoR
6) Monumento a la Madre Patria
The Monumento La Madre Patria is also known as the symbol of the country. This bronze monument was made in 1901 by the famous French sculptor, Henry Allouard. It measures three meters high and its unusual style features the metal figure of a woman who wears a crown of laurel on her head. Laurel is the symbol of victory. She holds a sword in her hand, Currently, it is located in the middle of the water fountain which is in front of the Monje Campero cinema.
7) Cristóforo Colombo
The monument of Cristoforo Colombo (Christopher Columbus), which stands in the heart of El Prado, is a work by the Italian Giuseppe Graciosa. On the white Carrara marble pedestal, which is about three meters high, passers-by can see Cristoforo Columbus holding a map and a rudder of the ship that brought him to the shores of the New World. He stands as a mute witness to the intense activity along La Paz’s main artery.
Image Courtesy of Wikimedia and Sebastiano del Piombo