Christian Monoliths in South America Quiz

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Overlooking the area which hosted the 2016 Summer Olympics stands Cristo Redentor, a statue of Christ the Redeemer atop Corcovado mountain. In what Atlantic coastal city is this located?

Answer: Rio de Janeiro

The Art Deco statue was built slowly over the period 1922 to 1931. It arises 39.6 meters above the mountain top which is itself 710 meters above Guanabara Bay. There is a narrow road, a tourist railway and hiking trails up the mountain to allow access to the summit.

2. The Blessed Virgin Mary is reputed to have appeared near the mountain city of Trujillo where a 48-meter tall statue in her honour was built by sculptor Manuel de La Fuente in 1983. In which nation is this located?

Answer: Venezuela

Trujillo is the capital city of the State of Trujillo in Venezuela. It is located in El Valle de Los Mukas. The city was founded by Diego Garc�a de Paredes (1506-1563), the son of Diego Garc�a de Paredes (1466-1534), a Spanish soldier of Trujillo in Spain.

The 1200-ton La Virgen de la Paz can be seen from the surrounding Venezuelan Andes Mountains. There is a chapel with stained glass windows open to the public.

3. Amazingly located so as to span a steep river gorge, the neo-Gothic church of Santuario de Las Lajas is a place of pilgrimage. In which South American country is it located?

Answer: Colombia

The church was transported stone-by-stone from Northern Europe. Its name -- "Las Lajas" -- refers to the flat stones in the river gorge where the Blessed Virgin was reported to have appeared in 1754 to Maria Mueces and her deaf-mute daughter Rosa who was healed by the apparition. The site is very close to the Ecuadorean border.

4. The well-preserved ruins of the San Ignacio Min� mission in Argentina have been named a UNESCO World Heritage site. Which Roman Catholic order, suppressed in 1767, of which Pope Francis is a member, founded the mission?

Answer: the Jesuits

The monastic missionaries who accompanied the Spanish conquistadores built many missions like San Ignacio Min� in an effort to convert the local Guarani people. While the mission, founded in 1611, was successful in its time, it was destroyed by the native people when the Jesuits were expelled in 1767.

The ruins are the beneficiary of several preservation efforts, including one sponsored by American Express.

5. A 27-meter tall concrete statue of Padre C�cero Rom�o Batista was erected in 1969 by sculptor Armando Lacerda. Where is it located?

Answer: Garden's Hill, Juazeiro do Norte, Brazil

Padre C�cero's statue is in Juazeiro do Norte, Brazil. The location atop Serra do Catol� which is also known as Colina do Horto was beloved by the priest as a place to conduct spiritual retreats. The city claims that it is the third largest concrete statute in the world and claims that 2.5 million people per year visit it.

6. The Sanctuary of Bom Jesus do Congonhas was built in the 18th Century to accommodate the gold miners and prospectors who rushed to the state of Minas Gerais. In which South American nation is it located?

Answer: Brazil

The city of Congonhas do Campo is located about 90 kilometers south of Belo Horizonte, the capital of Minas Gerais state, in Brazil. The basilica, Santu�rio do Bom Jesus do Matosinhos, was built by the Portuguese land owner Feliciano Mendes. It is especially noted for the sculptures of twelve Old Testament prophets arranged around the church's terrace.

It was made a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985.

7. A 34-meter-tall statue atop a six-meter pedestal is located at the summit of San Pedro Hill in Cochabamba, Bolivia. Of whom is this statue, the third largest in the Southern Hemisphere?

Answer: Jesus Christ

Cristo de la Concordia was built between 1987 and 1994. The design is by C�sar and W�lter Terrazas Pardo; it closely resembles the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is slightly smaller than the statute of Christ the King in Swiebodzin, Poland and slightly larger than Christ the Redeemer in Brazil.

There is a viewing area in the arms of the statue which can be reached by stairs.

8. Surrounded by concrete lions and old cannons, a statue of Saint John the Baptist is located in the town of San Juan de los Morros, in Gu�rico state, in which South American country?

Answer: Venezuela

The statue called San Juanote is a concrete effigy of Saint John the Baptist erected on a small hill called El Calvario in the center of the city of San Juan de los Morros in Venezuela. Juan Vicente G�mez ordered it built in 1933 and moved to San Juan de los Morros in 1935 in honour of the city becoming the capital of the State of Gu�rico.

9. Unlike most of the other enduring churches in South America, La Iglesia de Santa Mar�a de Loreto de Achao in Chilo�, Chile is made of something other than stone. Of what building material is it constructed?

Answer: wood

In the 18th and 19th Centuries, the Jesuits built churches of wood using abundant native timber. One of these, Santa Mar�a de Loreto, was constructed in 1740 when the islands in which it is located were administered by Spain. The church is located on Quinchao Island's largest town, Achao, and is therefor sometimes called La Iglesia de Achao.

The style of the many churches built in this manner at that time is called the Chilota School of Religious Architecture in Wood.

10. When he left office as the President of Peru in 2011, Alan Garc�a ordered Cristo del Pacifico ("The Christ of the Pacific") to be built in the capital. In which city is this 37-meter tall statue of Jesus Christ standing?

Answer: Lima

The design of the Cristo del Pacifico is plainly that of the Cristo Redento in Rio de Janeiro; it is about eight meters shorter. The monument stands on the Morro Solar in Lima's Chorrillo's district. The statue is lit at night with multi-coloured lights.

Source: Author FatherSteve

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor spanishliz before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

While Christianity was not the first religion practiced in South America, it is today the most ubiquitous. How many of these famous monuments and buildings can you sort?

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