A record-breaking statue of Jesus Christ has started the final stages of construction in Armenia following years of delays and setbacks.
The 33-meter aluminum likeness of Christ will stand atop a 44-meter pedestal, setting a new world record of 77 meters in height.
The statue is being erected on a structural complex housing a visitor center that will bring the total scale of the engineering feat to 101 meters, comfortably dwarfing New York’s iconic 93-meter Statue of Liberty.
The current record is held by the 61-meter Jesus Christ the Savior statue in Sumatra, Indonesia, which stands on an 8-meter plinth. It took the title in 2024, surpassing the previous record set by Poland’s Jesus Christ King of the Universe statue in the western town of Świebodzin.
The Świebodzin monument, like the new project outside the Armenian capital of Yerevan, features a 33-meter Christ figure to represent the 33 years of Jesus’ life. It is situated on top of a huge artificial mound, bringing the height of the entire structure to 52.5 meters.
The record was held for 79 years by the famous Christ the Redeemer statue overlooking Rio de Janeiro, which stands 38 meters high including its 8-meter pedestal.
Delays and opposition
Armenia’s gargantuan project was first announced in 2022 by business tycoon and former politician Gagik Tsarukian. It immediately faced objections from the Armenian Church, which opposes idolatry and accused the project of undermining the country’s long Christian heritage.
Armenia was the first country in the world to adopt Christianity as a national religion, formally embracing the faith in 301 AD.
Despite the Church’s protestations, the Armenian government gave the jumbo Jesus project its blessing until a ground-breaking ceremony damaged an ancient fortress before planning permission had been granted.
The plans were shelved and then in 2025, Culture Minister Zhanna Andreasyan declared the structure could not be built at its intended location, on the summit of the 2,528-meter Mount Hatis around 30 kilometers from Yerevan, over archeological fears.
Work resumed later that year after the foundations were moved several hundred meters away and new permits granted.
The mammoth Messiah currently sits in three pieces in a nearby village, waiting to be airlifted into place by helicopter.
Following the statue’s assembly, completion of the whole project is now tentatively scheduled for 2027, according to planners.
—