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Bishop to consecrate €23 million Konotopie Virgin Mary statue

8/15/2026

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Summary

Bishop Consecrates Statue

Bishop Krzysztof Wetkowski will consecrate the 55.6-meter Virgin Mary statue in Konotopie on August 15 2026.
Industrialist Roman Karkosik and his wife Grazyna are financing the monument at an estimated 23 million euros.
Sculptor Adam Jakub Matejkowski designed the 40.8-meter white-concrete figure on a 15-meter crown-shaped pedestal with a viewing terrace.
Officials say the site will boost tourism in the region.

Summary

Father Condemns Monument

Father Pawel Guzynski called monument a “King Kong in the field” and likened it to idolatry.
The Karkosiks, who financed the statue, live in a small palace near Konotopie.
A viewing platform inside the 15-metre crown pedestal lets visitors climb to the top.
The monument follows the 2010 Christ the King statue in Swiebodzin, reviving debate over religious structures as the Catholic Church remains strong in rural Poland but youth disengage.

History

Historical Context

Brazil inaugurated the 30-meter Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio in 1931, a project engineered by Heitor da Silva Costa and sculpted by French-Polish artist Paul Landowski, whose father fled the 1863 January Uprising. Inspired by that global Catholic icon, industrialist Roman Karkosik funded a 55.6-meter Virgin Mary monument in Konotopie, Poland, costing €23 million and aiming to boost tourism.

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Bishop Consecrates Statue

Bishop Krzysztof Wetkowski will consecrate the 55.6-meter Virgin Mary statue in Konotopie on August 15 2026.
Industrialist Roman Karkosik and his wife Grazyna are financing the monument at an estimated 23 million euros.
Sculptor Adam Jakub Matejkowski designed the 40.8-meter white-concrete figure on a 15-meter crown-shaped pedestal with a viewing terrace.
Officials say the site will boost tourism in the region.

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