Did you know that Madrid holds the world record for the number of statues dedicated to Satan? There are two of them in the city.
Yes, two, which represent Fallen Angels.

To start, a little reminder on Lucifer. He was the first angel created by God, and history says that he was his favourite. His mission: help to build the world.
But unfortunately, his pride and ambition made him want to seize the “Kingdom of Heaven.” He requested help from other rebellious angels.
When God realised Lucifer’s evil intentions, he sent Archangel Gabriel to fight him. A terrible battle raged which resulted in the defeat of Lucifer, who ended up in hell for eternity.

What surprised me in the first place was to find statues dedicated to Satan in Spain, a genuinely Catholic country. One provides another explanation of the existence of these statues. They would be a reference to a bible’s passage on the story of the fall of an angel.

The Fallen Angel fountain

Let’s go and discover this first and most famous statue.

You will easily find the fountain in El Retiro Park. I thought it would be a bit out of the way, in a little nook. But no, it couldn’t have been more exposed than where it sits. But before arriving there, the statue travelled a bit. First made in Rome in 1877 by Ricardo Bellver, a Spanish sculptor, then cast in bronze in Paris for the Universal Exhibition of 1878, to finally arrive in Madrid in 1885.

But despite protests against the statue, the fountain will stay in the park. It will also delight the satanic groups of Madrid that will come to his feet for commemorations on dark moon nights. Ah! One last little information! The statue is placed precisely 666 meters above sea level.

Air accident

Here we are in front of the 2nd statue. It has nothing to do with the previous one. Well, it’s not from the same era either.

This one, whose real name is “Accidente aéreo” was produced by the artist Miguel Angel Ruiz in 2004. Once again, I wonder how a statue of a fallen angel with its meaning can exist in Madrid.

Moreover, when the artist installed the statue, the locals of Madrid signed a petition asking for its removal. Of course, the sculptor opposed it. He then had another idea. To calm people’s opinion, he found a whole different story for his statue. He created a myth and made it known through the press.

This explanation no longer referring to Satan delighted the people. It was enough for them to accept that the statue remains in its place.

The strange story

When a journalist asked the artist to talk about his work, he said:
“Neither Icarus nor the devil. He’s a distracted aviator. The title of the work is “Air accident”.“

And he continued his story thus:
“10,000 years ago, a winged man went out for a walk. When he came back, flying leisurely on his back, sunbathing, he didn’t realize that an entire city has replaced the fields from where he took off. The result is this accident: a sculpture of confusion. “

A clue if you want to see it: you have to raise your head …

Conclusion

A little treasure hunt during your visit of Madrid. You will probably walk past each of the statues. The first, because it is in El Retiro Park that you have to walk at all costs if you are in Madrid. And the second is at one of the exits of Playa Mayor (3rd Calle de Los Milaneses), another compulsory passage of your visit.
All you have to do is find them. 😁