Monument de la Réformation (Wall of the Reformers)

Monument de la Réformation (Wall of the Reformers) Review

Conceived on a grand scale and erected between 1909 and 1917, this solemn 325- by 30-foot swath of granite pays homage to the 16th-century religious movement spearheaded by Guillaume Farel, Jean Calvin, Théodore de Bèze, and John Knox. Smaller statues of major Protestant figures, bas-reliefs, and inscriptions connected with the Reformation flank the lifelike giants as they hover over Bern, Geneva, and Edinburgh's coats of arms; Oliver Cromwell is surrounded by Pilgrims praying on the deck of the Mayflower and the 1689 presentation of the Bill of Rights to King William and Queen Mary by the English Houses of Parliament. The Reformation's—and Geneva's—motto, Post Tenebras Lux (After Darkness, Light), spreads over the whole. The location lies just below the Vieille Ville.