Stolperstein dedicated to Andrés Fariñas Adsuar

The Stolperstein dedicated to Andrés Fariñas Adsuar sits in Madrid's Chamberí district, at Calle Viriato 2, a short walk from the Nuevos Ministerios business area. It's a small brass-topped cobblestone set into the pavement — one of more than four hundred such markers scattered across the city, each honoring a Madrid resident murdered in the Nazi concentration camp system.

Who was Andrés Fariñas Adsuar?

Born in 1919, Andrés Fariñas Adsuar was among the many Spanish Republicans forced into exile in France in 1939, after the end of the Spanish Civil War. During the German occupation he passed through the Fallingbostel transit camp before being deported in 1941 to the Mauthausen concentration camp in Austria. He was killed on 17 October 1941 at Gusen, one of Mauthausen's harshest subcamps, notorious for the speed at which forced labor and starvation killed newly arrived prisoners. The stone at Calle Viriato 2 marks the address where he lived before he was forced to leave Spain.

What does the memorial stone represent?

A Stolperstein — literally a "stumbling stone" — is a small brass-covered paving block, part of a project started by German artist Gunter Demnig. Each one is set into the sidewalk in front of a victim's last freely chosen home and engraved with basic biographical facts: name, year of birth, the date of exile or arrest, and the place and date of death. In Madrid, the project traces the fate of Republican exiles and anti-Francoist activists who, after losing the civil war, fell into the hands of the Nazi terror apparatus in France and Germany.

How do you get there?

The stone is embedded in the pavement on Calle Viriato 2, in a quiet residential stretch of Chamberí well served by Madrid's metro network — the closest stations are Nuevos Ministerios and Gregorio Marañón. Because it's simply part of a public street, it's accessible around the clock at no cost, with no ticket or booking required.

What will you see on site?

The stone itself is unassuming — the size of a standard paving block, with a brass plate on top bearing the engraved inscription. There's no museum, no multilingual information panel, no large monument: the format is deliberately modest and personal, placed literally underfoot so that an ordinary walk through the city becomes a moment to pause and remember one specific person and their fate.

When should you visit?

The stone can be visited at any time of day or year, since it's part of the open street rather than a site with opening hours. Daylight does make the engraved brass surface easier to read, so a daytime visit gives the clearest view of the inscription.

Frequently asked questions

What is a Stolperstein? It's a small brass-topped paving stone embedded in the sidewalk in front of a Nazi victim's last home, engraved with basic facts about their life and death. The project was started by German artist Gunter Demnig and now includes similar stones in cities across Europe.

Who was Andrés Fariñas Adsuar and how did he die? Born in 1919, he fled to France in 1939 after the Spanish Civil War. During the German occupation he was held at the Fallingbostel camp before being deported to Mauthausen and then to its Gusen subcamp, where he was killed on 17 October 1941.

Where exactly is the stone located? On the pavement at Calle Viriato 2, in Madrid's Chamberí district, close to the Nuevos Ministerios metro station.

Are there other stones like this in Madrid? Yes — the city has more than four hundred similar markers, each dedicated to a different person who fell victim to the Nazi concentration camp system after the Spanish Civil War.