RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The statue of the tallest Christ in the world, 37.5 meters high without counting the pedestal, was erected in southern Brazil and is expected to be inaugurated, together with a tourist complex in the first half of 2023.
A year away from its official inauguration, the statue of Christ the Protector in Encantado, a city 145 kilometers from the state capital Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul state, was completed at the end of April.
Access to the site is still difficult, but the number of pilgrims and tourists has been steady since work began in 2019.
The Christ Protector in Encantado is 1.5 meters taller than Poland’s Christ the King, officially the largest in the world, and surpasses the 34.2 meters of Bolivia’s Christ of La Concordia and its famous countryman, Rio de Janeiro’s Christ the Redeemer, which is 30 meters.
According to the Association Friends of the Christ of Encantado (AACE), since the beginning of the works, 37,000 pilgrims have passed by the place, eager to see the works that were concluded, in their first stage, on April 22.
Work is still in progress, such as the finishing of the six-meter pedestal and the adequacy of the park that will house a tourist complex with a shopping center, restaurants, and several viewpoints on Morro das Antenas, which is part of the “Serra Gaúcha” (Rio Grande do Sul mountains).
The wingspan of the Christ’s open arms is 39 meters, a measurement greater than the statue’s height, the weight is 1,700 tons, and the height above sea level is 436 meters.
The site is surrounded by the mountainous vegetation of Vale do Taquarí, an important ecosystem with several options for ecotourism, which is complemented by the winter options of nearby cities such as Gramado and Bento Gonçalves.
However, the road that gives access to the park of Christ the Protector is still being restructured to meet the expected intense flow of vehicles.
With information from EFE