''Christ the Redeemer of the Andes'' ( es, Cristo Redentor de los Andes) is a monument high in the

Principal Cordillera Principal Cordillera ( es, Cordillera Principal) is the Andean mountain range that makes up the boundary between Central Chile and neighbouring areas of Argentina. It is also a continental divide between the Atlantic and the Pacific watersheds. ...

of the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

at 3,832 metres (12,572 ft)

above mean sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance ( height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as '' orthometric heights''. Th ...

on the border between

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

and

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

. It was unveiled on 13 March 1904 as a celebration of the peaceful resolution of the border dispute between the two countries. ''The Christ of the Andes'', a symbol of eternal peace, is commonly believed to have been made from the cannons of war, though some historians regard this as doubtful. Engraved at the feet in Spanish are the words, "Sooner shall these mountains crumble into dust than Chileans and Argentinians break the peace which at the feet of Christ, the Redeemer, they have sworn to maintain." The statue is located at the pass of '' La Cumbre'', the highest point on the old road between Mendoza in Argentina and

Santiago de Chile Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...

. The pass is also known as the Church ('' Iglesia'') Pass on the Chilean side and the '' Bermejo'' Pass on the Argentine. The nearest major settlements are the Argentine town of

Uspallata Uspallata is a village and administrative district in Argentina, in a scenic location on the road that crosses the Andes between Mendoza and Santiago in Chile. It is located west of Mendoza and was once served by the now disused Transandine R ...

and Juncal in Chile. The closest village is Las Cuevas. The road climbs 1 km over a sinuous 9 km from Las Cuevas to the pass. The road is only accessible in summer months, when there is no snow. Winter temperatures can reach -30 °C. The road is now principally used as a tourist route to visit the statue, with the main route between the two countries now using the

Cristo Redentor Tunnel The Paso Internacional Los Libertadores, also called ''Cristo Redentor'', is a mountain pass in the Andes between Argentina and Chile. It is the main transport route out of the Chilean capital city Santiago into Mendoza city in Argentina and so ...

at the foot of the climb.

Construction

At the beginning of the 20th century,

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-ol ...

wrote a series of

papal encyclical An encyclical was originally a circular letter sent to all the churches of a particular area in the ancient Roman Church. At that time, the word could be used for a letter sent out by any bishop. The word comes from the Late Latin (originally fro ...

s calling for peace and harmony and for devotion to

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

the Redeemer. At the same time, Argentina and Chile were coming close to armed conflict in an ongoing dispute over the location of the border. The bishop of Cuyo, monsignor Marcelino del Carmen Benavente, promised to erect a statue of Christ the Redeemer to remind the parties of Christ's message of peace. The seven-meter-high bronze statue was subsequently made by

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

sculptor Mateo Alonso and shown for a while in the patio of the

Lacordaire School Lacordaire is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Jean Théodore Lacordaire (1801–1870), Belgian entomologist *Jean-Baptiste Henri Lacordaire Jean-Baptiste Henri-Dominique Lacordaire (12 May 1802 – 21 November 1861), often ...

of the

Dominican Order The Order of Preachers ( la, Ordo Praedicatorum) abbreviated OP, also known as the Dominicans, is a Catholic mendicant order of Pontifical Right for men founded in Toulouse, France, by the Spanish priest, saint and mystic Dominic of ...

in Buenos Aires. As the countries slipped closer to war, Ángela Oliveira Cézar de Costa, a well-connected society lady who led a Christian group at the school, had the idea of taking the statue to the Andes in the event of peace as a symbol of unity between the two nations. She had particular cause for concern as her brother was an

Argentine Army The Argentine Army ( es, Ejército Argentino, EA) is the land force branch of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic and the senior military service of Argentina. Under the Argentine Constitution, the president of Argentina is the commander- ...

general preparing for conflict at the frontier. As a friend of the President of Argentina,

Julio Roca Alejo Julio Argentino Roca Paz (July 17, 1843 – October 19, 1914) was an army general and statesman who served as President of Argentina from 1880 to 1886 and from 1898 to 1904. Roca is the most important representative of the Generation ...

, she was able to gain the interest of both countries. She would later be nominated for the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...

. A diplomatic breakthrough in May 1902 led Argentina and Chile to a peaceful agreement. The plan for the statue progressed and Oliveira Cézar de Costa and Bishop Benavente prepared to move the statue to the pass of Cumbre del Bermejo, which

José de San Martín José Francisco de San Martín y Matorras (25 February 177817 August 1850), known simply as José de San Martín () or '' the Liberator of Argentina, Chile and Peru'', was an Argentine general and the primary leader of the southern and centr ...

had used in 1817 to cross the Andes and liberate Chile from Spanish colonial rule. In 1904, the Christ was moved in pieces 1,200 kilometers by train, then carried up the mountains by mule. The six-meter-high

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

pedestal designed by Molina Civit was completed on 15 February 1904, and Alonso, the original sculptor, directed the piecing together of the bronze statue. It was erected with the figure facing the line of the border, standing on a globe with South America prominent, his left hand holding a cross and his right raised in blessing.

Inauguration

On 13 March 1904, 3,000 Chileans and Argentines climbed to the summit despite the inhospitable conditions and watched the two armies, only a short time before ready to do battle with one another, firing

gun salute A gun salute or cannon salute is the use of a piece of artillery to fire shots, often 21 in number (''21-gun salute''), with the aim of marking an honor or celebrating a joyful event. It is a tradition in many countries around the world. Histo ...

s together. President Roca of Argentina and President

Germán Riesco Germán Riesco Errázuriz (; May 28, 1854 – December 8, 1916) was a Chilean political figure, and he served as President of Chile between 1901 and 1906. Early life He was born in Rancagua, the son of Mauricio Riesco, a Spanish merchant and o ...

of Chile were unable to attend but their foreign ministers were present, along with the Archbishop of Buenos Aires and the bishops of Cuyo, Argentina and

Ancud Ancud () is a city in southern Chile located in the northernmost part of the island and province of Chiloé, in Los Lagos Region. It is the second largest city of Chiloé Archipelago after Castro. The city was established in 1768 to function as ...

, Chile. Two plaques were unveiled celebrating the friendship between the two countries. One is inscribed (in Spanish) "Sooner shall these mountain crags crumble to dust than Chile and Argentina shall break this peace which at the feet of Christ the Redeemer they have sworn to maintain."

Subsequent development

In 1916 the cross of the statue was remade, the original having succumbed to the difficult climate conditions. The original cross of bronze was made into commemorative medals. Various further plaques were added over the years. A major repair was undertaken by the Argentine

Province of Mendoza Mendoza, officially Province of Mendoza, is a province of Argentina, in the western central part of the country in the Cuyo region. It borders San Juan to the north, La Pampa and Neuquén to the south, San Luis to the east, and the republic o ...

in 1993 when the statue was in great disrepair, as well as nearby buildings that had been used as a meteorological station. In 2004, the centenary of the statue was celebrated in a ceremony at the statue attended by President

Néstor Kirchner Néstor Carlos Kirchner (; 25 February 195027 October 2010) was an Argentine lawyer and politician who served as the President of Argentina from 2003 to 2007, Governor of Santa Cruz Province from 1991 to 2003, Secretary General of UNASUR and ...

of Argentina and

Ricardo Lagos Ricardo Froilán Lagos Escobar (; born 2 March 1938) is a Chilean lawyer, economist and social-democratic politician who served as president of Chile from 2000 to 2006. During the 1980s he was a well-known opponent of the Chilean military dic ...

of Chile. They reaffirmed the friendship between the two countries. The statue was declared a

National Historic Monument of Argentina The National Historic Monuments of Argentina are buildings, sites and features in Argentina listed by national decree as historic sites. This designation encourages greater protection under the oversight of the ''Comisión Nacional de Museos, Mo ...

Climate

Cristo Redentor has a dry-summer

tundra climate The tundra climate is a polar climate sub-type located in high latitudes and high mountains. undra climate https://www.britannica.com/science/tundra-climateThe Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2019 It is classified as ET according to Köppen ...

(Köppen ''ETs'') with virtually rainless summers and cold, snowy winters.

References

External links