The Beauty Around Us

VROC Reunion Rally 2015: Christ of the Ozarks

By Linda G. on September 17, 2015

This blog post continues Day 7 of our 13-day vacation. We are in Eureka Springs, AR attending the annual Vulcan Riders and Owners Club (VROC) Reunion motorcycle rally.

This afternoon Bob and I went sightseeing. Our first stop was at Thorncrown Chapel.  Our second stop was at the Crescent Hotel.  Our third stop was at the Eureka Springs and North Arkansas Railway Train Depot.  Our fourth and final stop was the Christ of the Ozarks memorial statue on the grounds of The Great Passion Play.

Self-portrait of Bob and me with the Christ of the Ozarks in the background

I obtained some interesting facts about the Christ of the Ozarks statue from its official website.

• The foundation of the statue required 340 tons of concrete Interlaced with steel virtually welded into the rock of Magnetic Mountain.
• The statue is made of 24 layers of white mortar on a steel frame.
• It was necessary to build an elevator up the side of the framework, which was completely surrounded by scaffolding during construction.
• The face is approximately 15 feet in height
• The hands from wrist to fingertip measure approximately 7 feet.
• The total weight of the statue is over two million pounds.
• The arm spread from fingertip to fingertip is 65 feet.
• The statue is located on Magnetic Mountain at an altitude of 1,500 feet.
• The statue stands sixty-seven feet high.
• The statue was sculpted by the late Emmet Sullivan, who was an apprentice to one of the sculptors of the Mount Rushmore monument.
• The statue was completed and dedicated in 1966.

We were amazed to see how large this statue really is when one is close to it!