| Victoria's Way | |
|---|---|
Ganesha statue in Victoria's Way, with Sugar Loaf mountain in background. |
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| Type | Meditation |
| Location | near Roundwood, County Wicklow, Ireland |
| Size | 9 hectares |
| Collections | Statues |
| Owned by | Victor Langheld |
| Annual budget | unknown |
| Annual visitors | unknown |
| Status | Open during summer months |
| Website | www.VictoriasWay.eu |
Victoria's Way, located near Roundwood, County Wicklow, Ireland, is a privately owned meditation garden notable for its black granite sculptures. The 9-hectare property includes a number of small lakes and forested areas. A plaque by the entrance says the park is dedicated to cryptographer Alan Turing.
The park is open to the public during the summer months, with an admission fee for adults.
Contents |
Most of the park's statues are made of black granite, and range in height from from 1.5m to 4.9m.[1] The first structure by the entrance is a sculpted tunnel based on the idea of vagina dentata.
Eight statues are dedicated to Ganesha, showing the elephant god dancing, reading, and playing musical instruments.[2] All the Ganesha sculptures were made in Tamil Nadu, India, and each took five craftsmen a year to make.[3]
Other statues include a large python-shaped seat, a solitary index finger pointing at the sky, and interpretations of Buddha, Shiva, Eve, and others.
Many of the sculptures include small motifs of modernity, such as a small pint of Guinness beside a Ganesha and a mobile telephone tucked into the back of a starving Buddha.[4]
The park is owned and maintained by Victor Langheld, who was born in 1940 in Berlin and has lived with a number of different religious orders in Thailand, Japan, and Sri Lanka.[5] Family inheritance allowed Langheld to spend most of his adult life travelling to spiritual sites in Asia, before travelling to Ireland and sponsoring the construction of the sculpture park.
Langheld continues designed most of the sculptures,[3] and continues to curate the park and welcome visitors.