The Abduction of Europa, Bronze sculpture in Samil, Vigo, Spain

The Abduction of Europa is a bronze sculpture-monument by Juan Oliveira, raised in 1991 at the end of Avenida de Europa, on a roundabout facing Samil beach in Navia, Vigo. It shows the Phoenician princess Europa riding Zeus in the form of a bull, all in bronze, standing 7 metres tall and weighing 1500 kilos. The group rises on a granite rock set in a small pond with jets, and the cavities and hollows of the figures give it an airy quality.

The bronze monument was made by Juan Oliveira Viéitez and erected in 1991 at the end of Avenida de Europa, on a roundabout facing Samil beach in Navia, Vigo. It stands on a granite rock in a small pond with water jets. The work is considered a technical feat for the airy effect achieved through the hollows and voids of the figures.

The bronze group depicts the Phoenician princess Europa carried off by Zeus in the form of a bull, a legend widely represented in Western art. Europa holds the flag of the European Union, linking the Greek myth to the continent that bears her name. The sculpture stands at the end of Avenida de Europa, facing Samil beach.

The bronze stands on a granite rock in a small pond at the end of Avenida de Europa, in the middle of a roundabout facing Samil beach in Navia. It is seen from the road and the beachfront, so there is no entrance or timetable; the roundabout is reached on foot from the promenade. Look for the reflection of the figures in the water.

The bronze figures are hollowed and pierced with cavities, which gives the seven-metre group its airy look despite weighing 1,500 kilos. The work stands on a granite rock in a small pond with water jets, at the end of Avenida de Europa by Samil beach.