Santuario del Cristo Roto, San José de Gracia, Aguascalientes, Religious statue in San José de Gracia, Mexico.
Santuario del Cristo Roto is a concrete and steel sculpture rising on an island within the Plutarco Elías Calles reservoir near San José de Gracia. The figure reaches a height of roughly 25 meters and stands in the water, surrounded by the mountains of the Aguascalientes region.
During the 1920s the Plutarco Elías Calles dam was built, named after the president at the time, and the flooding of the valley forced several communities to relocate. The sculpture was erected decades later to commemorate that displacement and the submerged villages.
The damaged figure without one arm and one leg recalls the forced departure of entire villages and represents people enduring difficult times. Pilgrims from different regions visit the site to pray before the sculpture and leave personal messages at its foot.
You reach the island by small boats that depart regularly from the shore in San José de Gracia and the crossing takes just a few minutes. It works best to come in the morning or late afternoon when the sun lights the water gently and fewer visitors are on site.
The sculpture ranks among the five largest religious monuments in the country and draws pilgrims who often leave small notes with prayers or thanks. Divers report that you can spot remains of old village walls and buildings below the surface when the water level is low.
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