Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
On July 7, 2007 Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro was named as a winner in the list of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World by the New Open World Corporation through an open online vote in which participated, according to the organization, 100 million people.
In Brazil a campaign to vote for the Christ called «Vote no Cristo» (Vote for the Christ in Portuguese) and an estimated 10 million Brazilians participated in the voting organized.
The Christ the Redeemer statue Corcovado or Christ is a statue of 38 meters that represents the figure of Jesus of Nazareth with open arms, looking towards the city of Rio de Janeiro and the sea.
Christ the Redeemer is located at the top of Corcovado Mountain in the Tijuca National Park, 709 meters above sea level, and has a total height of 30 meters.
The idea of building a religious monument in the city was first suggested in 1859 by Father Pedro Maria Boss and Princess Elizabeth. In 1921 the idea was taken up and the April 4, 1922 the cornerstone was laid. Four years later the works began.
The first sketches made by the artist Carlos Oswald imagined Christ carrying the cross, with a terrestrial globe in the hands on a pedestal symbolizing the world. Finally we chose the current design, also Carlos Oswald.
The project was developed by Brazilian architect Heitor da Silva Costa and took nearly five years to be completed. The executor of the sculpture was the French sculptor Paul Landowski.
To the coating various work materials were studied to finally select the «stone-soap». While it is a weak material, which can even be scratched with fingernails is extremely resistant to the passage of time, it does not deform, or crack with changes in temperature.
The construction of more than 1,000 tons, combines engineering, architecture and sculpture and no one died during the titanic construction, something really unusual for the time.
The lighting system was replaced twice: in 1932 and 2000 In 1980, during the visit of Pope John Paul II was restored as in 1990 In 2003, an escalator system was inaugurated, thus facilitating access to the platform of the statue. Were also installed three panoramic elevators, each with a capacity of 13 people, or a ton of weight.
How to get to Christ the Redeemer?
Train:
In Cosme Velho Station, in the district of the same name, you can board the train, leaving every half hour, taking twenty minutes to go through the forest and reach the top.
Car:
From the South Zone – the neighborhoods:
• Cosme Velho – by Ladeira Guararapes or Ladeira do Ascura
• Santa Teresa – along Rua Almirante Alexandrino
From North Zone – the neighborhood:
• Alto da Boa Vista – by the Estrada das Paineiras
Cars must be parked in the Paineiras. From there, the rest of the journey must be made by train or on foot (about 2 km. Upload). The buses are parked at the toll barrier.
Telephone: (55-21) 2558-1329 (Corcovado Railroad), (55-21) 2492-2252 (Tijuca National Park)