“A man-made cave inside Memorial Park Cemetery”
The Crystal Shrine Grotto is a man-made cave located inside of Memorial Park Cemetery in Memphis. Mexican folk artist Dionicio Rodriquez designed and created the cave over the course of ten years, beginning in 1937. Within the grotto are ten scenes depicting the life of Jesus Christ and additions to the scenes continued to be added for the next four decades. The scenes were done in mixed media of paint and sculpture by a variety of artists. The cave offers a peaceful ambience and even those who are not religious will surely appreciate its artistic value. Please enjoy these images from the grotto but note that pictures do not do justice to the beauty of the actual scenes. The Crystal Shrine Grotto is open to the public free of charge. It is located at 5668 Poplar Avenue in Memphis.
Reviews
Stop by the office on your way in and get fish food.
Quick little stop. But really cool. Has the crystal grotto which is a little cave that has religious artwork in display
Heads up, this shrine is under the big stone looking tower. Signs aren't completely helpful.
Turn around when you're at the bridge and you'll see a black bench near a gravestone. Check it out. It's a nice Easter egg.
This is such a beautiful place! Definitely the “wow” factor! The Crystal Shrine Grotto is a Cave filled with lots of glittering crystals, Sculpted stalactites emerge in clusters from a low ceiling, there are colored lights, natural sky lights made with crystals and beautiful biblical carvings & prerecorded harp music.
*(Since I didn’t know to begin with, a grotto is a small picturesque cave, especially an artificial one in a park or garden).
The Crystal Shrine Grotto is man-made but very realistic and the grounds (“Garden of the Gods”) surrounding the grotto are just as beautiful, which includes 3 large, conical rock formations, (the largest of which houses the Crystal Shrine Grotto). Beside the Grotto is a neighboring cave called the “Cave of Malapach” which is carved 59 feet into the hillside. In front of it, is a koi-filled man-made pond, the “Pool of Hebron” and the gnarled (fax tree) “Abraham’s Oak,” that visitors can walk thru or sit down in.( It is 15ft tall), a beautiful wood-carved bridge, a large wooden bench with delicate carvings on it, & lots of flowers all around.
One of the most amazing and beautiful artistic places I have been to! (I travel every weekend to new towns exploring).
Was a little hard to find in such a large cemetery but once we found it it was worth the visit. My mom really enjoyed the grotto. The carvings and other art work was just beautiful. My 2 y/o enjoyed the fish pond :D It's a free visit and I think it's worth the visit
Beautifully done and worth the trip off the highway. It was a little hard to find in the cemetery, but just stop and ask someone. Even if they tell you it is closed find out for your self. The person we asked said it was closed and you can't get in, but it was wide open. It doesn't take long to go through, so you can be back on the road in no time. Good for stretching the legs.
This is worth the stop to check out. Lots of intricate work!
Definitely worth the stop, whether you’ve lost someone or not. We lost our son 7 years ago today and the serenity of the entire area was so peaceful.
I personally like walking around cemeteries like this one, and Memorial Park is probably one of the prettiest I've ever seen. Take an hour or two to just walk through it and look at the sculptures and flowers and gravemarkers.
And the Grotto! Hard to believe that this cave was dug out by hand and then filled with 5 tons (FIVE. TONS.) of straight crystal. There's nowhere else like it!
Totally worth the stop. I debated cutting it from my trip to save a few minutes, but I'm glad I stuck to it. Unlike some of the other reviewers, I had no trouble finding it - just put "Crystal Shrine Grotto" into your GPS (I used Google Maps) and it'll take you right to it. There is one sign for it right after you enter the cemetery. The road is slightly wider across from the koi pond and grotto entrance to accommodate parking.
Pretty amazing. Was worth the stop. Beautiful, quick and easy off the highway.
Be prepared to meet a Memphis Police Officer. We stopped for 15 minutes and my car got a broke window and a bag stolen out of it.
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Crystal Shrine Grotto
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- Sun - Sat: 8:00 am - 4:00 pm
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