Not until the Chrysler Building was completed in New York City in 1930 was there a taller structure in the world.
This 300-meter tower, designed by Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel, was built in 1889.
Why was the Eiffel Tower built?
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| Photo credit Pepe Pont |
When the French government was organizing the Centennial Exposition of 1889, a fair to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution, a well-known bridge engineer Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel was asked to design and build a structure to symbolize the occasion.
Only intended to last 20 years, it was saved by the scientific experiments that Eiffel encouraged, and in particular by the first radio transmissions, followed by telecommunications. For example, the radio signals from the Pantheon Tower in 1898; it served as a military radio post in 1903; it transmitted the first public radio programme in 1925, and then broadcast television up to TNT more recently.
Do you know where it was supposed to be built?
Eiffel Tower was supposed to be built in Barcelona for the Universal exhibition in the year 1889, but the idea was dropped as it did not fit with the infrastructure of the city and also it was considered to be very costly.
Where is it located?
The Eiffel Tower is located on the southern bank of the Seine river.
How long did it take to build Eiffel tower?
It took 2 years 2 months and 5 days to give the tower its shape.
How much does it cost to build Eiffel Tower?
The American TV show Pricing the Priceless speculates that in 2011 the tower would cost about $480,000,000 to build, that the land under the tower is worth $350,000,000, and that the scrap value of the tower is worth $3,500,000.
How many people have come to see it?
Almost 250 million visitors regardless of age or origin have come from all over the planet to see it since its opening in 1889.
How do they protect it?
Constructed using puddle iron, the Tower is protected from oxidation by several coats of paint to ensure that it lives forever.
The Tower has been re-painted 18 times since its initial construction, an average of once every seven years. It has changed colour several times, passing from red-brown to yellow-ochre, then to chestnut brown and finally to the bronze of today, slightly shaded off towards the top to ensure that the colour is perceived to be the same all the way up as it stands against the Paris sky. Sixty tons of paint are necessary to cover the Tower's surface, as well as 50 kilometres of security cords, 5 acres of protection netting, 1500 brushes, 5000 sanding disks, 1500 sets of work clothes…and more than a year for a team of 25 painters to paint the Tower from top to bottom.
