Quezon Memorial Shrine at Quezon Memorial Circle, Quezon City

The grand Quezon Memorial Shrine is a Philippine National monument and iconic shrine built to honor the second president of the Philippines and the first president of the Commonwealth Government, Manuel Luis Molina Quezon (1878-1944). It is anchored at the center of the Quezon Memorial Circle, a national park in Quezon City, Philippines.

During the commonwealth government in 1938, Manuel L. Quezon founded the People’s Homesite Corporation and purchased land estate from Tuazon family in Diliman. Quezon dreamed of a city that would replace Manila as the capital of the Philippine nation. The National Assembly of the Philippines, the legislative branch passed the bill called Commonwealth Act 502, known as the Charter of Quezon City that lapsed and became a law without incumbent president Quezon’s signature on October 12,1939, hence establishing Quezon City. Quezon City became the capital of the Philippines from 1948 to 1976.

Demands for a national memorial were addressed by creating Quezon Memorial Committee to raise funds for the monument building under the virtue of the Executive Order No.79 signed by President Sergio Osmeña on December 17, 1945. President Ferdinand Marcos issued Presidential Decree No. 1 on September 24, 1972, to transfer the authority to National Historical Institute. The National Shrine was inaugurated on August 19, 1978. The remains of President Quezon and his wife, Aurora Aragon Quezon were transferred to the equilateral triangular base that served as the relics and mausoleum at the shrine.

Filipino Architect Federico Ilustre and Italian Architect Amberti designed and beautified the Quezon Memorial Shrine creating a memory of a man who defended democracy and autonomy. The towering memorial is 66-meter (217 ft) and initially constructed with Carrara Marble. The shrine is surrounded with three columns ornamented above the pylons with lamenting three (3) arched angels holding a crown of Sampaguita representing the Philippine Island of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The magnificent statue of angels was sculpted by Italian Artist Francesco Riccardo Monti. Above the colonnade is an observation attic that can provide panoramic view of Quezon City to 60 guests.

Museo ni Manuel Quezon at the foothold of the Quezon Memorial Shrine exhibited many artworks collected by Quezon during his public service career and contains information about Quezon and his time in a form of Hologram and interactive facilities.

The Quezon Memorial Shrine and Museum webpage (https://officialgazette.gov.ph/quezonmemorial/) were launched by the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office (PCDSPO) in partnership with the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) that showcased Quezon’s brief documentary films, clippings, photos, articles, documents, speeches, and other resources to archive cultural heritage mainly focusing how Quezon pioneered the peaceful campaign for Philippine autonomy.The page can be improved by developing virtual Quezon, a Digital humanities in Philippine history for example, reimagining and recreating Inaugural Address of President Manuel L. Quezon on November 15, 1943 as real time event and performance using digital technology, visual architecture, acoustic engineering, archaeological methods, theatre and performance methods.

References

1.Quezon Memorial Shrine, Quezon City: The Art and Artists of the Museo ni Manuel Quezon – Lakbay ng Lakan. (n.d.). Retrieved June 25, 2021, from https://lakansining.wordpress.com/2020/08/06/quezon-memorial-shrine-quezon-city-the-art-and-artists-of-the-museo-ni-manuel-quezon/

2.Andre Bertolano, R., Flores, N., Lapitan, P., Vanessa Macabate, R., Rose Managuit, A., Lourdes Aidalice Platon, J., & Monren Mercado, J. T. (2018). Likha: A Study on the Use of Interactive Program on Visitors’ Learning Expertise and Travel Intention: The Case of Quezon City Experience Museum. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 8(16), 319–338. https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v8-i16/5135

3.VISIBILITY OF ENVIRONMENTAL FEATURES IN SELECTED PHILIPPINE MUSEUMS: THE RELEVANCE OF EDUCATIONAL FIELD TRIPS IN HISTORY TEACHING – ProQuest. (n.d.). Retrieved June 24, 2021, from https://www.proquest.com/docview/1528149235/9180371CBFEF4C29PQ/1?accountid=207160

4.Quezon City | Philippines | Britannica. (n.d.). Retrieved June 24, 2021, from https://www.britannica.com/place/Quezon-City

5.Quezon Memorial Shrine. (n.d.). Retrieved June 25, 2021, from https://officialgazette.gov.ph/quezonmemorial/

6.Evaluating Virtual Paul’s Cross Project: A Performance, Visual, and Acoustic Model in Digital Humanities – Utak Henyo. (n.d.). Retrieved June 25, 2021, from https://utakhenyo.com/evaluating-virtual-pauls-cross-project-a-performance-visual-and-acoustic-model-in-digital-humanities/