Christ the Redeemer

1.

Christ the Redeemer

2.

• The statue is 120 ft tall and weighs 635
tons.
• It is now a part of the modern Seven
Wonders of the World.
• It is located on 2,300 feet high in the
Tujuca Forest National Park overlooking
the city.
• The statue is made of concrete and
soapstone.
• As a symbol of Brazilian Christianity, the
statue has become an icon for Rio de
Janeiro and Brazil.

3.

• The idea of building a statue of Christ on the
top of Carcovado was first suggested by
Catholic priest Pedro Maria Boss in the mid1850s, but was dismissed.
The second proposal was
made in 1921 by the
Catholic Circle of Rio. In
order to gain more
publicity, the group
organized the collection
of donations and
signatures for those who
were in favor of building
the statue.
There were a lot of
suggestions.
Finally, a statue of
Jesus with open
arms was chosen.

4.

• Local engineer Heitor da Silva
Costa designed the statue and
Polish-French sculptor Paul
Landowski sculpted it .
• Construction took nine years, from
1922 to 1931 and cost US$250,000.

5.

It was struck by lightning in February
of 2008 during an electrical storm.
The statue was left unscathed, owing
to the fact that it was made with a top
layer of soapstone, which is a good
insulator.