One of Rio de Janeiro's most famous landmarks, Christ the Redeemer , was inaugurated in 1931. The idea came from French priest Pierre-Marie Boss, who dreamed of building a religious monument at the top of Corcovado, 710 meters high. The dream was recorded in the form of a poem in the book "Imitation of Christ", from 1903. Initially, the proposal was to inaugurate the monument on the centenary of Brazil's Independence, in 1922. The previous year, a competition was held to select the best project for the monument and the winner was engineer Heitor da Silva Costa. In the same period, more 20 thousand people signed a petition to request authorization to build a monument to Epitácio Pessoa, president at the time. Caminho que leva até o monumento. (Reprodução)
The Christ statue was to be built only with donations from Brazilians and in 1923 the Archdiocese of Rio de Janeiro launched the "Monument Week", where a thousand contos de réis were raised. A few years later, more funds were raised for the construction. In total, the Christ the Redeemer cost 2,500 contos de réis, equivalent to R$9.5 million. Vista da cidade do Rio de Janeiro. (Reprodução)
The six hands responsible for Christ are those of Heitor da Silva Costa, designer of the project, painter Carlos Oswald and sculptor Maximiliam Paul Landowsky, responsible for the head and hands of the monument. With the exception of the hands and head, which were molded in France, the entire body of Christ was built in Brazil. The body is made of soapstone, cut into thousands of triangles, glued by hand onto a fabric and then applied to the statue by soapstone artists. Vista da cidade do Rio de Janeiro (Reprodução)
The open arms of the sculpture are reminiscent of a cross. It has a total area of 38 square meters, 30 of which are the monument and eight of which are the pedestal. Each of the feet is 1.35 meters long and each of the hands is 3.2 meters long. The total weight is 1,145 tons. Visitantes no Cristo Redentor (Reprodução)
It was only a year after its inauguration that the Christ statue received its final lighting. In 1942, a cement road was built, facilitating access to Corcovado Mountain. In 1973, the landscape was listed by the National Institute of Historical Heritage, Iphan. In 1980, it was renovated for the first time, due to the visit of Pope John Paul II to the country. In 2005, the Cultural Heritage Advisory Council unanimously approved the listing of the Christ. In 2006, it was considered a Catholic sanctuary of Brazil, and finally, In 2007, it was elected as one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World, with more than 100 million votes. In 2011, with sustainability issues in mind, LED lighting was installed in the monument. Cristo iluminado durante a noite (Reprodução)
In 2009, the History Channel made a documentary about the marvel, called "Christ the Redeemer". With exclusive images from the time of its construction and recent testimonies from important figures, the film tells the story of Christ, from the visit of Emperor Dom Pedro I. until the period it was released. Restauração do Cristo Redentor (Reprodução)
The lighting may vary depending on the date of the celebration. At Christmas and New Year, the monument hosted a light show. Projections in the colors of the French flag illuminated the 38-meter statue after the attacks in 2015, as a form of mourning. and solidarity with the country. Pink October, Blue November and Orange December are also remembered by the projections. Monumento iluminado com as cores da bandeira da França (Reprodução)
Several Brazilian composers pay homage to Christ the Redeemer in their lyrics. Some of the most famous are "Samba do Avião" by Tom Jobim, which is the title of this article; "Carta ao Tom" by Toquinho and Vinícius de Moraes; "Alagados" by Paralamas do Sucesso; A Train to the Stars, by Cazuza and Gilberto Gil, among other compositions by Vicente Celesitno, Ivan Lins, Raul Seixas, Arnaldo Antunes and Carlinhos Brown Cristo Redentor visto no fim da tarde (Reprodução)
Prices to visit Christ the Redeemer vary between R$61 and R$74 depending on the season. Senior citizens and students are entitled to a half-price ticket. Children up to 5 years old go free and from 6 to 11 years old pay R$48. Services may include: transportation from some points in Rio de Janeiro. Visiting hours are from 8 am to 6 pm. 
