however, the significance of the mountain in carioca culture and history goes back much further than that of the statue, which did not exist until the 1920s.  corcovado stands at an imposing height of over 2,000 feet, one of the tallest mountains in the area.

originally called pináculo da tentação (temptation peak) by portuguese colonizers, its name was later changed from a biblical reference to one alluding to the mountain's shape -corcovado is portuguese for 'hunchback', and the designation stuck.