Lately, from the ground far below, Rio’s famed Christ the Redeemer statue appears to be cupping tiny people in its mighty hand. It’s no m

It’s Hard Work to Restore Rio’s Christ the Redeemer, but the Views Are Amazing

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2021-05-30 01:30:02

Lately, from the ground far below, Rio’s famed Christ the Redeemer statue appears to be cupping tiny people in its mighty hand. It’s no miracle, unless you consider the restoration of the iconic monument more than 2,000 feet above the city a miracle. And it kind of is.

As a boy growing up in Niteroi, Rio de Janeiro’s sister city, on the opposite side of Guanabara Bay, Alexsandro Brauna looked out over the water and gawked at the statue, on its perch atop Corcovado mountain, arms spread to embrace all the beauty and brutality playing out below. In 2021, the 27-year-old Brauna has been one of the tiny people in its hand. He rappels down the 100-foot statue, straddles one of those famously outstretched arms to pose for photos, and takes in a Christ’s eye view of the extraordinary cityscape below.

The world’s largest Art Deco monument and one of the New Seven Wonders of the World is getting a tip-to-toe restoration ahead of its 90th birthday in October 2021.