The symbol of Rio

The Christ the Redeemer Statue is one of the new 7 wonders of the world...

Source: http://www.corcovado-rio.com/historia.htm

Inauguration: 08/12/1931
Sculptor: Paul Max. Landowski
Total height: 38 meters
Statue height: 30 meters
Weight: 1,145 tonnes
Armspan: 30 meters
Location: at the top of Corcovado hill, 710 meters above sea level.

Recent history of the Corcovado hill dates back to the 16th century, when Portuguese colonists named it Pinnacle of Temptation, a reference to a Biblical mount. In the 17th century the hill was renamed as Corcovado, due to its form resembling a hump (“corcova“, in Portuguese). In 1824, two years after Brazil’s independence from Portugal, Dom Pedro I led an expedition to the top of Corcovado, opening a path to the summit. 35 years later, in 1859, the priest Pedro Maria Boss suggested to Princess Isabel the building of a religious monument atop Corcovado. In 1882, Dom Pedro II authorized the building of Corcovado Rack Railway, which started to operate in 1884 in the Cosme Velho-Paineiras stretch. One year later, the final railway stretch was inaugurated, connecting Paineiras to the top of the hill. The railway’s total extension is 3800 meters. Only in 1921 the idea of Father Maria Boss of building a religious monument would be revisited, then to celebrate the centennial of Brazilian independence. The construction’s cornerstone would be launched on April 4, 1922. In 1923 a contest was held to choose the monument to be built and the winning project was that of engineer Heitor da Silva Costa. Finally, in 1931, the Christ the Redeemer Statue was finally inaugurated. The statue was designed by Carlos Oswald and executed by French sculptor Paul Maximilian Landowski. Escalators and elevators were added in 2003. In 2007, Christ the Redeemer was elected one of the New 7 Wonders of the World.

And Vitacura is also part of this success story, since 2002 having 1 Shop and 1 Stand at the Corcovado Train Station in Laranjeiras. There the tourist can purchase miniatures of the Train, the Christ statue (including in Soapstone, which is the material used in the lining of the actual statue) in addition to T-shirts, bags and several gifts with the image of the Monument.

Come visit the monument and get to know the Vitacura Shop at Corcovado Train Station!

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