Shrine of Remembrance

1730 East Fountain Boulevard

Colorado Springs, CO 80910

Phone: 719-634-1597

Fax: 719-634-6610

Email: ShrineOfRemembrance@yahoo.com

Immediate Need

If you have immediate need of our services, we're available for you 24 hours a day. Call us at 719-634-1597.

Obituaries & Tributes

It is not always possible to pay respects in person, so we hope that this small token will help.

Olympian Gardens

Beauty is a Timeless Journey

Costas Rombocos with the “Nike of Samothrace” and Caryatids at the Shrine of Remembrance Olympian Gardens and Caesar’s Palace

“Beauty was not simply something to behold;

it was something one could do.” — Toni Morrison

Our new addition is a magnificent new sculpture and is a breathtaking life-sized replica of “The Winged Victory of Samothrace” in the Louvre Museum, depicting Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, which is thought to have been sculpted around 200–190 BC. According to the Louvre website, this exceptional monument was discovered by Charles Champoiseau, French Vice-Consul to Adrianople (Turkey) in 1863 on the small island of Samothrace in the northwest Aegean. It was sculpted using Parian marble and was possibly dedicated by the Rhodians to commemorate a naval victory. Over 10 million people visit the Louvre in Paris, France each year and see the Nike statue and learn its legendary story. Numerous copies of the Louvre’s “Winged Victory of Samothrace” exist in museums and galleries around the world.

Until now one of the best-known marble copies adorns the opulent fountains of Caesars Palace casino in Las Vegas. It was placed there when the hotel was first built in 1966 and still to this day it is showcased with their spectacular fountains in the most prominent location facing Las Vegas Boulevard. More than 39 million people visit Las Vegas each year and see the statue in front of Caesars Palace. The Winged Victory has been described as “the greatest masterpiece of Hellenistic sculpture,” by H.W. Janson, (Renaissance sculpture specialist, chairman and professor of the department of art, New York University, 1949-1979).

The “Nike of Samothrace” statue reached its final destination (from sea to shining sea) and is presently installed in the North wing of the New Olympian Gardens at the Shrine of Remembrance “America the Beautiful” Chapel Mausoleum. Costas Rombocos stated that some of the largest cranes and forklifts were employed to uncrate from two metal containers the statues and columbaria when they arrived. Ten people worked for three days to complete the installation of five columbaria and three Greek statues, all of granite, with unmatched craftsmanship and design, which were placed on top of their pedestals. Two of the statues are life-sized Caryatids that are replicas of remarkable beauty. They were inspired by the original Caryatids at the Acropolis in Athens, Greece from 420 BC and by the Caryatids on the east frieze of the Parthenon. One must see them to appreciate the grandeur of this accomplishment that was ongoing throughout the year 2015. After a year in the making, it can now be visited and enjoyed. It will be open to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and from 12:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Sunday.

The regal beauty of this one-of-a-kind “Nike of Samothrace” sculpture, made of a solid massive granite block from the farthest reaches of the world, extends to 14 feet in height with its columbarium base (the only one of its kind in the world). It rivals that of the original marble sculpture, as it is a perfect, unblemished duplicate modeled by a very talented, international sculptor exclusively for the Shrine of Remembrance.

The new Olympian Legacy Gardens at the Shrine of Remembrance, with its enchanting and beautiful perpetually landscaped grounds, showcases the new Caryatid statues and the new Winged Victory Nike statue. With this addition, the Shrine’s gardens are destined to become a popular site for tourists to the Pikes Peak region as one of the most famous mausoleums, with no cemetery grounds, in the country. It is a place for retreat for special family occasions, including Celebration of Life services together with the Shrine of Remembrance “America the Beautiful” Chapel and our exclusive Veterans Honor Court. The Nike statue will provide an excellent backdrop for family photographs. It will also be a distinguished, one of a kind location to gather following military honors as it represents Victory. Nike was the winged goddess or spirit of victory, both in battle and peaceful competition. The original sculpture was created to not only honor the goddess, Nike, but to honor a sea battle. Nike fought with the Olympian gods against the Titans, and therefore is considered a representation of the victory of the Olympians.

The Olympian Legacy Gardens will offer many choices for memorialization to honor your family’s legacy. This new addition to our memorialization garden, with its mature 40-foot-high trees, is estimated to provide for as many as 5000 inurnments of cremated remains and personalized private family estates like no other.

Do you know what your legacy is going to be?

Costas Rombocos, C.E.O. for the Shrine of Remembrance, who immigrated from Athens, Greece, to Colorado Springs in the U.S. in 1965, stated that it was his dream come true to provide this inspirational and historical setting for this new addition at the Shrine of Remembrance to honor the history of the Olympians and the beginning of the Olympic Games in Olympia, Greece, which is believed to have begun in 776 BC.