New Statue Celebrates Women of Faith Through Christ’s Parable

As part of the ongoing renovation of Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, the Relief Society General Presidency and the Presiding Bishopric of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have presented the newest statue, titled “Five Wise Virgins.”

Crews installed the new sculpture on the east side of Temple Square near the Relief Society building on Monday, March 31, 2025. It is the first on the east side of campus and the seventh statue at Church headquarters.

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A media availability with Bishop W. Christopher Waddell, First Counselor in the Presiding Bishopric, and Relief Society General President Camille N. Johnson was held on Wednesday, April 2, to unveil the new work of art to the public.

"Three or four years ago, we didn’t know it all come to fruition this week, the week of general conference," said Bishop Waddell. “So we’re thrilled with the way that it worked. And in addition, at a time when much of Temple Square has opened back up.” 

The sculptures on Temple Square focus on the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, including this sculpture that depicts His Parable of the Ten Virgins and invites the viewer to increase their spiritual preparation.

“I think this statue is a beautiful reflection of being disciples of Jesus Christ,” said President Johnson. 

“The women are depicted shoulder to shoulder, supporting each other,” she added. “There’s one that has her arm around the other. They’re looking into each other’s eyes and letting their light shine. Their lamps are filled with the oil of conversion in Jesus Christ. And with that light of conversion, they let it shine and support each other. That is lifting and supporting others and letting their light shine.”

The new sculpture was created by Utah artist Ben Hammond, known for his previous work focusing on women. This statue depicts women of different ethnicities and ages and their devotion to Jesus Christ.

“We wanted to show some diversity of ethnicity and different sizes and scales, like, all the women aren’t the same height," Hammond explained. "So, I didn’t want to just show the same person over and over again in the story. It is about the parable, but it also is about the organization of the Relief Society."

Parable of the Ten Virgins

In the Bible, Jesus Christ told a parable, or story, of ten women waiting to attend a wedding (see Matthew 25:1–13). Five were wise and brought oil to light their lamps, but the other five did not bring oil. The host was delayed. Those who were prepared had oil to light their lamps during the night as they waited. The other five left to purchase oil. When they returned, they were too late for the wedding.

This story teaches the importance of spiritual preparation and our efforts to strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ by keeping “oil in our lamps.”

Temple Square Statues

The “Five Wise Virgins” sculpture joins three other new statues created by local artists. They are located on the west side of Temple Square and are called “Joseph Receives the Plates,” “The First Vision” and “Come, Follow Me.” Two Priesthood Restoration statues and the Seagull monument were restored and reinstalled on the west side.

In the coming years, more statues will be added that focus on Christ’s ministry and the restoration of the gospel.

Temple Square Renovation

As renovation work on the Salt Lake Temple continues toward a projected completion in 2026, President Russell M. Nelson recently announced open house celebration dates, which will run from April 2027 to October 2027.

“We warmly invite our friends to come and learn about God’s plan for His children and rejoice in the love of Jesus Christ,” President Nelson said in a social media post on February 14, 2025.

To learn more about the latest construction updates and the open house celebration, visit the Temple Square website.