Updated

Updated · Euronews · Aug 15

Polish Village Unveils 55-Meter Virgin Mary Statue Backed by $26 Million Bet on Pilgrims

Updated

Updated · Euronews · Aug 15

Polish Village Unveils 55-Meter Virgin Mary Statue Backed by $26 Million Bet on Pilgrims

Q: What secret illness drove a billionaire to build Europe's tallest Virgin Mary statue in a tiny 150-person village?

It has not been publicly identified. Reporting says Roman Karkosik, the Polish billionaire who financed the statue with his wife Grażyna, suffered a serious illness, but no source in the material provided names the disease. What is clear is that multiple accounts link the project directly to that health scare. The Karkosiks described the monument as a votive offering and an expression of gratitude to God. One report says Karkosik wanted to thank the Virgin Mary for his recovery after the illness, and another says the statue’s construction followed that episode. So the answer to the “secret illness” part is that it remains undisclosed in public reporting. The best-supported explanation is that a grave but unspecified illness prompted Karkosik to fund the 55.6-meter Virgin Mary statue in Konotopie as an act of thanksgiving rooted in his Catholic faith. The monument, believed to be Europe’s tallest Marian statue, now towers over a village of fewer than 150 residents. Supporters hope it will serve both as a pilgrimage destination and a tourist draw, while critics have questioned whether such a large private religious project was the best use of money.

3 articles · Updated · Euronews · Aug 15

Konotopie now hosts a 55-meter Virgin Mary statue—the tallest Marian monument in Europe—as officials prepare to bless and promote the site despite unfinished grounds.
100 million zlotys, or about $26 million, came from billionaire Roman Karkosik, with nearby Kikol hoping the monument will pull in pilgrims and create jobs in one of the region's poorest municipalities.
Coaches were already arriving while scaffolding still stood, suggesting early visitor interest even before the full inauguration and blessing on the Assumption feast day.
Some residents questioned the spending, saying the money would have been better used for a hospital or orphanage.
71% of Poles identified as Roman Catholic in the 2021 census, down from 88% a decade earlier, placing the giant monument in a country that remains devout but is secularising quickly.