Quezon Memorial Shrine....

Since I was in the area, on account of my attendance at the World TB Day 2006 event yesterday (see previous post here), I thought I take a few pictures of the Quezon Memorial Shrine.

Even though I see the monument dedicated to the memory of the 1st President of the Philippine Commonwealth/2nd President of the Philippine Republic virtually everyday, somehow, I never really took the time to really look at it. Well, now I did. Here are a few pictures:

The Quezon Memorial Shrine. It was penned by Federico Ilustre, a Filipino architect whose submitted design won in a nationwide competition. It took about twenty years to complete, with construction ending in 1978, on the 100th anniversary of President Quezon's birthday. It stands exactly 66 meters tall, representing the age when he died. The three pylons represent the three main islands of the Philippines: Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.


At the top of the pylons are three mourning angels holding sampaguita wreaths. The angels are the work of Italian sculptor Monti. The sampaguita is the national flower of the Philippines.


Entrance to the Quezon Memorial Shrine Museum at the base of the monument. It houses various Quezon memorabilia. Picture taking wasn't allowed inside, so if you're curious at what's displayed, you have to visit it yourself.


Quezon's marble tomb at the center of the shrine. Its design was patterned after Napoleon Bonaparte's tomb in Les Invalides. President Quezon's remains were reinterred in it on August 19, 1979.

"I prefer a country run like hell by Filipinos to a country run like heaven by Americans. Because, however bad a Filipino government might be, we can always change it."

- President Manuel L. Quezon

Ironically enough, he seemed to have gotten his wish.

As a side note, President Quezon's grandson, Manuel L. Quezon III, aside from being a journalist and writer, is also a very popular blogger to boot. You can visit his blog here.