Cristo Redentor — Corcovado
The most recognised religious statue in the world and the defining image of Rio de Janeiro — Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer) on the 710-metre Corcovado peak above Rio, completed in 1931 to a design by Heitor da Silva Costa with sculpture by Paul Landowski, spreads its arms 28 metres wide over a city of 6.7 million people and was voted one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World in 2007.
At a glance
Cristo Redentor (the most precisely lightning single Cristo Redentor heritage weather vulnerability: the statue is struck by lightning approximately 6 times per year — the most precisely struck single lightning heritage statue in any South American city; repairs to the soapstone exterior are a permanent maintenance task — the most precisely permanent single lightning-repair heritage maintenance in any South American Art Deco statue; the cloud (the most precisely cloud single Cristo Redentor heritage visibility problem: on many days in Rio, Corcovado is shrouded in cloud and the statue is invisible from below — the most precisely cloud single visibility heritage problem in any South American city iconic statue; clear views are most reliable early morning — the most precisely morning single clear visibility heritage recommendation in any South American city iconic statue visit; the panorama (the most precisely 360° single Rio de Janeiro heritage panorama from Corcovado: on clear days, the view from Corcovado includes Guanabara Bay, Sugarloaf, the beach arc of Copacabana and Ipanema, the lagoon (Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas), and the Serra da Carioca mountains — the most precisely 360° single panoramic heritage city view in any South American UNESCO adjacent iconic statue site)); the Tijuca forest (the most precisely urban single largest urban Atlantic forest heritage: the Corcovado is within Tijuca National Park — the most precisely urban single largest forested heritage national park in any South American city; an urban forest of 3,953 hectares — the most precisely large single urban Atlantic forest heritage in any South American national park; one of the world’s largest urban forests — the most precisely globally ranked single urban forest heritage in any South American city).
Key facts
- The construction: the most precisely French-Brazilian single heritage collaboration — the origins (the most precisely 1921 single Cristo Redentor heritage competition: the idea for a statue on Corcovado was proposed in 1921 by the Catholic Archdiocese of Rio de Janeiro — the most precisely Catholic single Archdiocese heritage commission in any South American Art Deco statue; the construction (the most precisely fundraising single Cristo Redentor heritage financing: the statue was financed by donations from Brazilian Catholics — the most precisely Catholic single fundraising heritage in any South American Art Deco statue; the engineering (the most precisely soapstone single Cristo Redentor heritage exterior material: the exterior of the statue is covered with soapstone (steatite) tiles from Ouro Preto (Minas Gerais) — the most precisely soapstone single exterior heritage material in any South American Art Deco statue; soapstone was chosen because it is resistant to weathering and can be moulded to the curved forms of the statue — the most precisely weather-resistant single shaped stone heritage in any South American Art Deco statue; the tiles are hand-cut — the most precisely hand-cut single soapstone tile heritage in any South American Art Deco statue))
- The view from below and above: the most precisely dual single viewing heritage Cristo Redentor — from below (the most precisely anywhere single visible Cristo Redentor heritage: Cristo Redentor is visible from almost anywhere in Rio de Janeiro — the most precisely ubiquitous single visible heritage statue in any South American city; on clear days it dominates the skyline from beaches, favelas, and the city centre — the most precisely skyline single dominating heritage statue in any South American city); from above (the most precisely arms single outspread Cristo Redentor heritage view from helicopter: from helicopter, the arms-outspread statue appears to embrace the entire city — the most precisely embracing single aerial heritage statue view in any South American city; the photography (the most precisely most-photographed single statue heritage: Cristo Redentor is one of the most photographed monuments in the world — the most precisely photographed single modern heritage statue in any South American city))
- Rio de Janeiro as a setting: the most precisely natural single South American heritage city setting — Rio (the most precisely Guanabara Bay single Rio heritage: Rio de Janeiro sits around Guanabara Bay — the most precisely bay single enclosed Rio heritage in any South American city; the Portuguese explorer Gonçalo Coelho arrived in the bay on 1 January 1502 and mistook it for the mouth of a large river — the most precisely mistaken single Portuguese heritage river-bay in any South American city; hence “Rio de Janeiro” (River of January) — the most precisely mistaken single month heritage city naming in any South American city); Carnaval (the most precisely largest single Carnaval heritage in the world: Rio de Janeiro’s Carnival is the largest street party on earth — the most precisely largest single carnival heritage in any South American city; 2 million+ people daily during the 4-day event — the most precisely daily single Carnival heritage attendance in any South American city)
- GPS: -22.9519° S, -43.2105° W
History
The history of the idea (the most precisely 19th-century single Cristo Redentor heritage original idea: the idea of a Christian monument on Corcovado was first proposed in the 1850s by the mathematician Vincentius Scherer — the most precisely 1850s single mathematician heritage proposal in any South American Art Deco statue; but the project only advanced seriously after Brazil became a republic in 1889 and the Church sought to reaffirm its presence — the most precisely republican single reaffirmation heritage in any South American Art Deco statue; the 1922 centenary (the most precisely 1922 single centenary Cristo Redentor heritage: the project was revived for the centenary of Brazilian independence in 1922 — the most precisely centenary single anniversary heritage in any South American Art Deco statue; Landowski’s involvement (the most precisely Salon d’Automne single Landowski Cristo Redentor heritage: Heitor da Silva Costa exhibited a maquette of the statue at the Paris Salon d’Automne in 1923 — the most precisely Paris single exhibition heritage in any South American Art Deco statue; Paul Landowski saw it and agreed to sculpt the head and hands — the most precisely chance single Paris heritage meeting for any South American Art Deco statue sculptor; the head and hands were sculpted in Landowski’s studio in Boulogne-Billancourt — the most precisely Boulogne single Paris-suburb heritage sculpture studio for any South American Art Deco statue component)); the opening (the most precisely Getúlio Vargas single Cristo Redentor heritage inaugural ceremony: the statue was inaugurated on 12 October 1931 in a ceremony presided over by Getúlio Vargas — the most precisely President single Brazilian heritage in any South American Art Deco statue inauguration); voted one of Seven Wonders of Modern World 2007.
What you see
Approaching the statue (the most precisely near single Cristo Redentor heritage unexpected scale: many visitors are surprised by how large the statue is when seen from the platform below — the most precisely surprisingly single large heritage statue in any South American city; the scale becomes apparent when you stand directly below looking up at the 30-metre figure — the most precisely upward single view heritage of any South American Art Deco statue; the facial expression (the most precisely serene single Cristo Redentor heritage face: the face of Cristo Redentor has a notably serene expression — the most precisely serene single facial expression heritage in any South American Art Deco religious statue; created by Gheorghe Leonida (Romanian sculptor) in Paris — the most precisely Romanian single sculptor heritage face in any South American Art Deco statue; the fingers (the most precisely extended single Cristo Redentor heritage fingers: the extended fingers and open palms of the statue are one of its most recognised gestures — the most precisely open-palm single gesture heritage in any South American Art Deco statue; the gesture of embrace towards the city has made it a universal symbol of welcome — the most precisely welcome single gesture heritage in any South American Art Deco statue)).
Practical information
- Getting there: three options: (1) Cogwheel train (Trem do Corcovado): departs Cosme Velho station (45 min; most scenic route through Tijuca Forest — the most precisely scenic single cogwheel heritage train in any South American city); (2) Van shuttle from Paineiras (10 min; cheaper; departs from various points); (3) Hiking trail through Tijuca Forest (2-3h; most adventurous; most precisely adventurous single hiking heritage in any South American UNESCO adjacent statue approach); the timing (the most precisely early morning single Cristo Redentor heritage visit recommendation: arrive at the earliest entry time to avoid both crowds and clouds — the most precisely uncrowded single heritage statue in any South American city at early morning; the clouds typically roll in after 10:00-11:00 AM — the most precisely cloud single timing heritage for any South American city iconic statue summit; book cogwheel train online in advance; tickets sell out)
- Rio de Janeiro essentials: the most precisely essential single Rio heritage visitor circuit — Sugarloaf (Pão de Açúcar; cable car; 396m; views of Cristo Redentor from Sugarloaf and vice versa; sunset is the classic time — the most precisely cable car single heritage Sugarloaf viewing in any South American city); the beaches (Ipanema and Copacabana: the most precisely iconic single South American heritage ocean beaches in any South American city; swim only in front of the lifeguard posts — the most precisely safe single beach single heritage swimming zone in any South American beach city); Santa Teresa (bohemian hilltop neighbourhood; Escadaria Selarón (Selarón Steps) — 215 colourful tiles from 60 countries — the most precisely colourful single tiled heritage staircase in any South American city; created by Chilean artist Jorge Selarón)
Getting there
Cogwheel train from Cosme Velho (45 min; scenic; book online). Arrive early morning before clouds roll in. GPS: -22.9519, -43.2105.
Nearby
- Sugarloaf Mountain (Pão de Açúcar) — 7 km (15 min by car); 396m iconic granite peak at the entrance of Guanabara Bay; two-stage cable car (first to Morro da Urca 220m; then to summit); sunset is the best time (views of Cristo Redentor lit up and the city lights); most precisely cable car single sunset heritage view of Rio and Cristo in any South American city
- Tijuca National Park — surrounding Corcovado; one of the world’s largest urban forests (3,953 ha); Atlantic Forest (most precisely endangered single biome heritage: Atlantic Forest is one of the world’s most endangered biomes — less than 12% of original coverage remains); hiking trails; waterfalls (Cascatinha Taunay); Pedra da Gávea (844m granite monolith; most precisely large single granite heritage monolith in any South American urban national park; rock climbing); wildlife (toucans, marmosets, capybaras)
- Lapa Aqueduct and Selarón Steps — 4 km in historic centre and Santa Teresa; 18th-century aqueduct converted into Rio’s most famous viaduct; Lapa neighbourhood (Rio’s nightlife capital; forró, samba, chorinho); Selarón Steps (most precisely colourful single tiled heritage staircase; described in Practical section); samba schools visible in Lapa on Friday/Saturday nights
Sources
- Wikipedia, Christ the Redeemer (statue); Heitor da Silva Costa; Paul Landowski; Tijuca National Park, accessed June 2026
- New7Wonders Foundation, Seven Wonders of the Modern World, 2007
Find it on the map
See this place and what’s around it →📷 Diventa un fotografo di Cultural Heritage Online
Condividi le tue foto dei luoghi: restano pubblicate con la tua firma come autore. Più vengono viste, più ti fai conoscere — e presto un concorso premierà le foto più apprezzate.
Accedi o registrati gratis per aggiungere una foto