Was the Christ statue built from bottom to top, or from top to bottom?

Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro was built from top to bottom. The first part of the Christ statue figure to be completed was the head.

What is the Christ statue made of?

Metal, in the shape of copper sheeting was the initially considered to build the monument but Costa (the Brazilian architect-engineer) thought that the look of the metal from a long distance would be ugly.

The statue was therefore built utilizing reinforced concrete, a popular construction material in the art deco period of the 1920’s. This helped to reduce the total price of the statue, which was built as a 13-storey building. Later, artistic details were added.

What sort of material covers the statue?

The Christ statue is covered with soapstone (steatite) mosaics. Soapstone is an extremely weather-resistant stone and does not deform or crack with sharp changes in temperature. It is impermeable, acid-resistant, and does not dilate. It has talcum powder in its composition, which reduces the friction caused by wind.

Tens of thousands small soapstone triangles were used to cover the entire Christ statue. The triangles measure 3 centimetres (1.18”) on the sides and are 7 millimetres (0.27”) thick. The head and the hands are the most critical (tender) part of the monument. On those parts, the stones are thinner to represent the details of the eyes, eyelids, chin and fingers.

These soap stones triangles were glued on thin paperboards by women down in Rio de Janeiro. While they glued, they would write their names and those of their family members on the back of the stones. Later, the paperboards with the soap stones triangles were applied to the statue by tile setters.

The Christ the Redeemer statue has never been painted.

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