The Oblation statue in UP Diliman | Photo: Visual Tales Blog
UP Diliman is not only famous because of its picturesque sunken garden and Mang Larry s
Isawan, the campus also holds the 3.3-metre original
It was conceived during the reign of UP President Rafael Palma in 1925. Palma, who commissioned Tolentino, wanted the statue to be inspired by the second verse of Jose Rizal’s
Mi Ultimo Adios.
According to Tolentino, the Oblation statue is inspired by man’s patriotism towards his country. “The completely nude figure of a young man with outstretched arms and open hands, with a tilted head, closed eyes and parted lips murmuring a prayer, with breast forward in the act of offering himself, is my interpretation of that sublime stanza. It symbolizes all the unknown heroes who fell during the night.”