One of Rio de Janeiro’s most visible attraction is the Rio de Janeiro Cathedral or the Metropolitan Cathedral of Rio de Janeiro. This cone shaped building’s massive size and footprint at the heart of the city is impossible to miss. It is 106 meters in diameter, and 96 meters tall. The concrete behemoth has little common with traditional architecture of churches. Rather, it appears like an ancient Mayan pyramid.

The Cathedral was designed by Edgar Fonseca, a student of Oscar Niemeyer, and was built over a period of 12 years from 1964 to 1976. When completed it replaced the 18th century Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel of the Ancient See, as seat of the Archdiocese.

Photo credit: Cyro Silva/Flickr