Cristo de la Concordia (Christ of Peace) is a statue of Jesus Christ located atop San Pedro Hill, to the east of Cochabamba, Bolivia. It is accessible by cable car, or by climbing 2,000 steps. The statue is 33.44 m tall, on a pedestal of 6.24 m, for a total height of 39.68 m.

Construction

Construction of the statue began on 12 July 1987, and was completed 20 November 1994. It was designed by César and Wálter Terrazas Pardo, and was modeled after the statue Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro. Standing 265 m above the city of Cochabamba, the statue rises 2840.00 m above sea level. Upon its completion, it became the largest statue of Jesus Christ in the world, surpassing the one it was modeled after. It weighs approximately 2200 t. The head of the statue is 4.64 m tall, and weighs 11850 kg. The arms span 32.87 m. The statue has a surface area of 2,400 sq. metres (25,833 sq. ft.). 1,399 stairs lead to a viewing area inside the arms of the statue, but visitors are only permitted to make the ascent on Sundays.

Design

The statue is slightly smaller than Christ the King in Świebodzin, Poland (36 m tall if the 2 m high crown of Christ the King is counted) and taller than the Christ the Redeemer (30 m tall) outside Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and it is the second largest statue of Jesus Christ in the world. It is the third largest statue in the Southern Hemisphere, after the statue of Virgen de la Paz in Venezuela, and the statue of Saint Rita of Cascia in Brazil. The left hand of the statue points to the South, and the right points to the North. Initially, the statue was planned to be exactly 33 m, one metre for every year of Jesus Christ's life. However, an extra 44 cm was added as "well-coiffed" hair atop Christ's head, making it taller than its brother in Rio de Janeiro. Locals from Cochabamba say the discrepancy accounts for Christ living "a little past" his 33rd year.