How Tall Is The Jesus Statue in Brazil?

Christ the Redeemer, a colossal statue of Jesus Christ, is located on top of Corcovado Mountain in Rio de Janeiro, southeastern Brazil. Corcovado, which towers over Rio de Janeiro, Brazil's main port city, is celebrated with traditional and popular songs. Completed in 1931, the Christ the Redeemer statue is 98 feet (30 meters) tall and has arms that stretch horizontally up to 92 feet (28 meters) long. The statue has become a symbol of the city of Rio de Janeiro and the entire country of Brazil.

Made of reinforced concrete and covered with a mosaic of thousands of triangular soapstone tiles, the statue sits on a square stone pedestal about 26 feet (8 meters) high, which itself sits on a platform atop a hill. The statue is the largest Art Deco sculpture in the world.

In the 1850s, Vincentian priest Pedro Maria Boss suggested erecting a Christian monument on Corcovado Hill in honor of Princess Isabel, daughter of Brazil's regent Pedro II, although the project never Not approved. In 1921, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Rio de Janeiro proposed building a statue of Christ atop the 2,310-foot (704-meter) hill, which would be visible from anywhere in Rio due to its commanding height. Citizens petition the president. Epitacio Pessoa allowed the statue to be built on Corcovado Hill.

With permission granted, the foundation's groundbreaking ceremony took place on April 4, 1922 - to mark the centenary of Brazil's independence from Portugal - although the final design for the monument had not yet been chosen. In the same year, a competition was held to find a designer, and the Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa was chosen for his sketch of an image of Christ holding a cross in his right hand and the world in his left hand . Silva Costa later revised the plan in collaboration with Brazilian artist Carlos Oswald; Oswald is credited with the idea of the figure's standing pose with arms outstretched. French sculptor Paul Landowski, who collaborated with Silva Costa on the final design, is considered the primary designer of the statue's head and hands. Funds were raised largely privately by the church. Under the supervision of Silva Costa, construction began in 1926 and continued for five years. During this time, materials and workers were transported by rail to the top of the mountain.

After the statue was completed, it was dedicated on October 12, 1931. It has undergone regular repairs and renovations over the years, including a thorough cleaning in 1980 in preparation for Pope John Paul II's visit to Brazil that year, and a project in 2010, when the surface was restored and refurbished. Escalators and a panoramic elevator were added in 2002; previously, in order to reach the statue itself, visitors had to climb more than 200 steps as the final stage of their journey. In 2006, to commemorate the statue's 75th anniversary, a chapel at the base of the statue was dedicated to Our Lady of Aparecida, Brazil's patron saint.