How Tall Is Christ the Redeemer in Brazil? (Plus 5 Other Crazy Tall Statues)

The world is full of some pretty impressive tall statues, and one can’t-miss monument is Christ the Redeemer in Brazil. Not only is this statue an impressive architectural display, but it’s also one of the Seven Wonders of the New World. Explore this monument and five other crazy tall statues.

How Tall Is the Christ the Redeemer Statue?

Christ the Redeemer is an incredible feat of engineering and art. It is located in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, at the peak of the  Corcovado mountain in the Tijuca National Park. The statue measures 98 feet or 30 meters tall.

History

Although Christ the Redeemer is far from the tallest statue in the world, it may seem a lot larger given that it is located on top of a 2,300-foot-tall mountain.

The statue’s story began in the mid-1800s when a priest named Pedro Maria Boss suggested constructing a Christian monument on Corcovado Mountain to honor the princess regent of Brazil, writes History Daily. However, construction for the project was not approved.

It would be many years later before construction for Christ the Redeemer began. In 1920, the Catholic Circle of Rio proposed a new idea for a monument on the mountain. This time the idea was a religious statue featuring Christ with open arms — a symbol of peace.

Construction

Construction for Christ the Redeemer began in 1922 and lasted nine years. The project cost the equivalent of US $250,000. In today’s money, that’s over $4 million! Of course, creating a monument of this size took quite a team of creative minds, architects, and sculptors.

An engineer named Heitor da Silva Costa and artist Carlos Oswald designed the statue. A French-Polish artist named Paul Landowski joined the team to break down the design into workable clay pieces. Gheorghe Leonida, a Roman artist, and sculptor, crafted the statue’s face and hands.

A railway system transported workers and materials to the summit of the mountain. The statue itself consists of reinforced concrete and soapstone tiles. Christ the Redeemer has been struck by lightning and undergone various restoration projects over the years.

Visit the Christ the Redeemer Statue

Christ the Redeemer opened to the public on October 12, 1931. Today it is one of the Seven Wonders of the New World, along with the Great Wall of China, Chichén Itzá, Petra, Machu Picchu, the Taj Mahal, and the Colosseum. According to Rio de Janeiro by Cariocas, there are three main ways to visit Christ the Redeemer

The first way to visit Christ the Redeemer is to take the Corcovado Train to the monument in a 20-minute journey through the Atlantic Forest. The train station is in the Cosme Velho neighborhood, which you can reach by bus. Tickets include a roundtrip journey and entrance to visit Chris the Redeemer.

The official transport of Tijuca National Park is via a Paineiras-Corcovado Official Van. There are several boarding points, and like the train, you can buy tickets that include a round-trip journey and access to the monument.

Finally, you can hike to Christ the Redeemer, but Rio de Janeiro by Cariocas warns that this option isn’t ideal, as the journey is extremely challenging and can be unsafe. The hike to reach the base of the monument begins at Parque Lage in the Jardim Botânico neighborhood.

It is a difficult 4-mile hike with some areas that are so steep you must pull yourself up using chains and ropes. The outlet also warns that there are reports of robberies on the path, making it a very inadvisable option.

How Tall is Christ the Redeemer Compared to These 5 Other Statues?

Christ the Redeemer is not the only enormous statue in the world. In fact, this monument doesn’t even make the top 10 largest statues in the world. Other fascinating and beautiful works of architecture celebrate religious figures, political leaders, and the country’s ideals and values.

Statue of Unity

The tallest statue in the world is known as the Statue of Unity, located in Gujarat, India. This incredible monument measures 597 feet or 182 meters tall. That’s over five times the size of Christ the Redeemer!

The man depicted in the Statue of Unity is Bharat Ratna Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India’s first Deputy Prime Minister. According to the monument’s website, under Patel’s leadership, India’s 560 princely states were united into the single Union of India.

Construction on the muniment began in 2013 with the Indian company Larsen & Toubro taking up the project. It was completed in 2018 and cost the equivalent of US $422 million to construct.

Laykyun Setkyar

Laykyun Sekkya is the third-largest statue in the world, located in Khatakan Taung, Myanmar. The statue depicts Gautama Buddha standing behind a reclining statue of another Gautama Buddha. It is 380 feet or 115.8 meters tall.

Construction of the Laykyun Sekkya took 12 years, lasting from 1996-2008. According to Orange Smile, the statue was erected almost exclusively thanks to the donations of locals, attributing to its lengthy construction period. The statue is painted yellow to represent wisdom and features 27 floors and a special elevator inside.

Great Buddha of Thailand

The Great Buddha of Thailand is a concrete statue painted gold and located in Ang Thong, Thailand. Construction first began in 1990 and was completed years later in 2008.

The Great Buddha of Thailand stands at 305 feet tall and cost around 131 million Thai Baht or $3.75 million US to build. According to Atlas Obscura, those who touch the Great Buddha’s right hand are said to be blessed with luck.

Statue of Liberty

The Statue of Liberty, located in New York City, may not be included on many lists of the world’s tallest statues. That’s probably because Lady Liberty herself is only 151 feet tall. However, she stands on a 154 feet tall pedestal, making the whole sculpture 305 feet.

In 1865, Frenchman Édouard de Laboulaye proposed constructing a monument as a gift to the United States, writes the Ellis Island Foundation. Laboulaye wished to celebrate the centennial of the Declaration of Independence, the close relationship between France and America, and the recent abolition of slavery in the United States.

Sculptor Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi designed the Statue of Liberty. His plans included an inscription of  July 4, 1776, in Roman numerals, and a broken shackle and chains at Lady Liberty’s feet. It took roughly ten years to build the statue. Costs included around $250,000 from the French to construct the statue and $300,000 for the pedestal.

Confucius of Mount Ni

The Confucius of Mount Ni is located in the Shandong province of China. The statue reached 236 feet or 72 meters tall upon completion in 2016.

Mount Ni holds cultural significance and is the tallest statue of Confucious in the world. Han dynasty historian Sima Qian wrote in his book The Authentic Confucius: A Life of Thought and Politics that Confucius’ parents Shu-Liang and Yan Zhengzai, prayed on Mount Ni shortly before Confucius’ birth.

In some mythological accounts, such as the one reported in The Temple of Memories: History, Power, and Morality in a Chinese Village, Confucius was born and abandoned by his mother on Mount Ni. A tiger and eagle looked after him until she eventually returned.

Summary of Impressive and Tall Statues