From its purpose, to its creatures, to its impressive stats, join us as we explore the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio De Janeiro! 10. Its Meaning Is...Up For Debate Let's think about statues and monuments in the grander sense for a bit, ok? Every single time one of them is made, they're made for a purpose, correct? For example, the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC is meant to be a symbol of President Abraham Lincoln and the freedom he brought to so many people during his run as President. That's a very clear meaning, and rightfully so I might add. But, for the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio De Janeiro...the meaning is technically a bit up for debate. Because how a lot of people see it is very different from how other people see it. . 9. It Was Built To Fight "Godlessness" Ok, so we've delved a lot into what the statue might actually mean in terms of its position and such. But let's ask a more basic question, why was it built at all? You might think this an odd question given that the statue is Christ the Redeemer and likely was built to show off the Brazilian faith, right? Well that might have been a reason for other countries, but for Brazil in 1920, it was a little more complicated than that. 8. "Christ With A Ball" Whether we realize it or not, statue makers go through a long process of trying to make sure that their upcoming statues look the right way, are made the right way, and convey the right message. Heitor da Silva Costa was no different, and not unlike many other legendary statues...the Christ The Redeemer statue once had a very different design plan. 7. It Has Been Damaged By Lightning I want you think about the Christ The Redeemer for a sec, think about how high up in the air it is in regards to Rio De Janeiro. If you don't know, it's nearly a half-mile up via a mountain that is within the city. That elevation was again done to ensure that the people could see the Christ The Redeemer statue just about everywhere they went. But, as you hopefully know, the higher up into the air you go, the more problems nature has to throw at you. 6. It Took Nearly A Decade To Make Construction projects in the modern age is nothing compared to the projects that have been done over time. Even in the 1920's with all the advances they had made they were still doing a lot of things by hand. Major construction vehicles hadn't been truly built yet, and even if they had, not everyone in the world had them. So to make the Christ The Redeemer statue in Rio De Janeiro, it took a lot of time and effort. Because recall, it was built on top of a mountain. 5. It May Start Looking Different In 2020 As we just noted, much of the statue is made with reinforced concrete. It's strong reliable, and as we also noted, can be easy to fix. However, what you "see" in regards to the statue isn't concrete, it's actually a material known as soapstone. Why is it coated in that? Well, not unlike things like the Statue of Liberty (which is actually made of copper but has a petina that makes it green), they wanted the statue to feel "lighter" and more visible, and more visually 4. Restoration Has Been Done Naturally, and For Visitors As we've stated previously, the Christ The Redeemer statue has been worked on over the years since its official finishing in 1931. There has been damages to be fixed, visuals to be reapplied and so on and so forth. But what might surprise you is that much of the restorations have been done in the last 40 years. 3. Going Up? For the longest time, the only way to get to the Christ The Redeemer statue was to walk up the side of the mountain via 200 steps, which can be good for your exercise habits, but not exactly fun if you're not really in shape. But you had to do it in order to get to the statue. 2. Graffiti Is A National Crime Sadly, the idea of spray painting or "graffiting" a work of art is a very popular pastime for troublemakers and vandals. And in 2010, some such vandals decided that they were going to go and mark up the Christ The Redeemer statue while it was going under a renovation. Here's the problem with that, it had honestly never happened before, so there wasn't an official response. Until they did it, and the mayor of Rio declared it a "crime against the nation", so if anyone is dumb enough to follow their example, they can officially call themselves enemies of the state. 1. There's A Chapel At The Base Of The Statue Without a doubt, the Christ The Redeemer statue is one of the most visited places in Rio De Janeiro, and for good reason, but some people have wanted to see it grow in its "abilities" if you will outside of it being a tourist attraction.

• published: 28 Jan 2020
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