The Complejo Escultórico Ernesto Che Guevara is an outdoor monument, a museum, and a mausoleum all in one. The approach is dominated by a massive bronze statue of Guevara, nine metres tall, positioned with his arm in a sling — as he appeared during the battle of Santa Clara. Beneath the statue, the mausoleum holds the remains of Guevara and 29 other fighters who died with him in Bolivia.
The museum attached to the complex covers Guevara's life in detail, from his Argentinian middle-class origins through the motorcycle journey across South America, the Sierra Maestra campaign, and the Congo and Bolivia ventures that ended in his death. It is a serious museum, not pure hagiography, and contains photographs, letters, and personal effects that illuminate the man behind the icon. Photography is not permitted inside the mausoleum chamber; an eternal flame burns there. The complex is free to enter — a deliberate statement about access to history.