Minerva is a bronze statue in Madrid, Spain, installed on the rooftop of the CÃÂrculo de Bellas Artes. It is a representation of Minerva, the Roman goddess of wisdom, arts and strategic warfare.
In 1964, the project for the statueâÂÂintending to fulfill the vision of the original architect Antonio Palacios for the top of the buildingâÂÂwas awarded by the CÃÂrculo de Bellas Artes to Juan Luis Vassallo.
The sculptural ensemble, representing a standing figure of the goddess, features characteristic attributes associated to Pallas Athena, such as the helmet, shield, spear and owl. Cast in bronze in Arganda del Rey by Eduardo Capa, a disciple of Vassallo, it weighs 3 tonnes.
Following a complicated effort to transport the extremely heavy statue up to the rooftop (involving the installation of a 8-metre high and 1-tonne iron girder in order to secure the structure of the building) codenamed "Operation Minerva", the statue was finally put on its pedestal on 24 January 1966. It stands at about 58 metres above street level, dominating over the intersection between the calle de Alcalá and the Gran VÃÂa.