The giant La Catrina installation stands in Mexico City’s Zócalo for the Day of the Dead.
The nearly 110-foot La Catrina figure towers over the Zócalo, surpassing Puerto Vallarta’s 2023 record.
A giant Mexico City skeleton has earned a Guinness World Records title as the world’s tallest Day of the Dead installation. The nearly 110-foot figure stands in the capital’s main public square, the Zócalo.
Weighing more than 100 tonnes, the monument surpasses the previous record that Puerto Vallarta set in 2023. It depicts La Catrina, the skeletal character closely associated with Mexico’s annual remembrance celebrations.
Mexico City skeleton combines steel and fibreglass
About 140 workers built the towering figure using a steel framework and lightweight fibreglass components. Its purple gown stretches more than 88 feet, adding to the scale of the display.
Alongside the sculpture, a traditional altar features thousands of orange marigolds grown in the nearby Xochimilco district. The flowers also carry a special meaning during the Day of the Dead.
Tradition holds that their scent and colour help guide departed loved ones’ spirits back to their families. However, the giant display is temporary: visitors have until November 2 to see the sculpture and altar before workers dismantle it.
La Catrina’s roots in Mexican culture
Mexico observes the Day of the Dead each year on November 1 and 2. During the celebrations, families gather to honour relatives and friends who have died.
The tradition blends ancient Indigenous beliefs with European influences. Families create memorial altars called ofrendas and decorate graves, while participants also wear colourful skeleton-themed costumes.
La Catrina’s history, meanwhile, reaches back to the early 20th century and Mexican illustrator José Guadalupe Posada. He created the skeletal character to mock wealthy women who embraced European fashion while distancing themselves from their Mexican heritage.
Muralist Diego Rivera later helped popularise La Catrina through his artwork. As a result, the figure became an enduring symbol of Mexican identity and the Day of the Dead.
