The Eiffel Tower is one of the most important monuments of Paris. In fact, it is more than a monument, it's something else, a symbol of the city itself.
It was building by Gustave Eiffel in 1889. Monsieur Eifeel was an engineer who build brigdes made of steel throughout France and other european countries during the second half of the ninettenth century.
Here you can see a photograph of Gustave Eiffel. The picture was taken by Nadar a ver famous photographer in France.
Below you can see one of the Eiffel's brigdes. This one is in Biarritz.
1889 was, indeed, a special year because it was the conmemoration of the triumph of the French Revolution. Therefore, this aniversary clashed with the International Exhibition. This event started in London in 1851 and since then took place every five years or so in a different city each time.
This is a postcard of the International Exhibition in Paris. |
For the French exhibition, their personel staff considered that it was a great idea to built a very special monument. Although Eiffel wasn't the first choice for the project, he worked hard since the begining to get the job. Though there were some rumours that he was very good contacts in the goverment that should helped him to get the job as well.
Gustave Eiffel designed an enormous tower made of iron. In the picture below you can see the structure's tower with all the detalis.
The most amazing thing about the tower was it's structure that it looked like as a framework instead of a building. It seemed that the monument was unfinished. And that what made most of the people rejected this "new monument".
Despite of the opinion of the Eiffel's contemporaries, most of them hated the tower since the begining, the Eiffel Tower soon became the most important tourist attraction during the celebration of the international exhibition. Everybody who came to Paris those days, wanted to visit the tower and checked out if it was so ugly than everyone said.
Moreover, when the international event was finished, the Eiffel Tower remained to stay. During the First War World it was used as a radio broadcasting.
Nowadays it is not only a monument that people from all over the world should visit every year. It is also a symbol of freedom and hope. And the image of a city that everyone can reconogize all over the world.
The Eiffel's masterpiece has also inspired to several artists who have painted it in differents ways. Here are some examples:
The Eiffel Tower by George Seurat 1889. |
The Eiffel Tower by Henri Rousseau 1898 |
The Eiffel Tower by Robert Delaunay 1911 |
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