General Jose Gervasio Artigas is a bronze statue, José Artigas was a 19th-century general, sometimes called "the father of Uruguayan independence", "Protector de los Pueblos Libres" or "Jefe de los Orientales". At its base are engraved the words "Liberty of America is my dream and its attainment my only hope." There is also one like it in Washington D.C.