As Duas Marias, Bronze statue in Alameda Park, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
As Duas Marias is a bronze sculpture in Alameda Park in Santiago de Compostela showing two life-sized female figures walking side by side. The figures appear as two sisters engaged in conversation and wear elegant dresses and hats reminiscent of early-to-mid 20th-century fashion.
César Lombera created the work in 1994 to commemorate the Fandiño Ricart sisters, who faced persecution during the Spanish Civil War due to their brothers' anarchist activities in the 1930s. A commemorative plaque was added in 2014 to honor the significance of the two women to Santiago.
The sculpture shows Maruxa and Coralia Fandiño Ricart, who strolled through Santiago every afternoon at 2 PM wearing colorful clothing and makeup. Their daily walk became a fixture of city life and the two became legendary despite, or perhaps because of, social rejection.
The monument stands at the entrance to Alameda Park and is freely accessible for walkers entering the park or enjoying views toward the cathedral. The plaque next to the figures provides information about the sisters' story.
The figures carry umbrellas even though they often walked in bright sunshine, a detail emphasizing the sisters' eccentricities. Visitors sometimes leave small flowers or coins at the base of the sculpture as a gesture of sympathy.
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