Fun Facts About The Eiffel Tower

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Several years ago we were lucky enough to visit Paris and, of course, we went to see the Eiffel Tower. Some interesting facts about the Eiffel Tower are: • It was built in 1889 as an entrance arch to the 1889 World's Fair. • The design was put forward in a competition and subsequently won. • The engineering company of Gustave Eiffel came up with the design. • Four lattice girders were put together to form a steel pylon held in place by metal trusses. • The wrought iron component weighs 7,300 tonnes. • All parts were formed and assembled off-site. • Eiffel's licence was to stand for twenty years after which it had to be dismantled. • By 1909, the tower was so useful as a communications tower that it was allowed to remain in place. • It is 1,050 feet tall, about the height of an 81 storey building. • The 18,038 pieces of metal were held together with two and a half million rivets. • The base covers 412 square metres. • It is painted every seven years and requires fifty tons of paint. • There are 300 steps to the first level, 300 more steps to the second level and an elevator (lift) to the top. • During World War II, the cables of the lifts were cut to prevent Hitler's forces from ascending the tower. Despite much controversy when it was first erected, today the Eiffel Tower is the most visited fee-paying tourist site in the world. Thousands, just like us, visit the site each year. It has become an internationally recognisable cultural and artistic feature that is distinctively French. I’m sure you would all recognise the Eiffel Tower but this photo details part of the intricate ironwork. And wouldn’t you have loved to win the contract for supplying the rivets?