With the dust now settled on the Paris Olympics, here's some stuff you probably didn't know about the French capital's most famous landmark.
The great spire of iron lattice work is instantly recognisable all over the world. So familiar is the tower in the global imagination, it’s hard to believe that the 1000-foot structure was first conceived as a temporary pop-up.
Originally the entrance way of the Exposition Universelle (World’s Fair) held in Paris in 1889, on the centenary of the French Revolution, the daring design came from the company of famous engineer Gustave Eiffel and was originally meant to be dismantled after 20 years. Eiffel managed to secure his creation’s future by adding public uses to the tower, including a military telegraph, which was used in World War One. Today, a television antenna still tops the tower, adding 17 feet to its height.
While the tower is named for Eiffel, it was actually Maurice Koechlin and Emile Nouguier - two engineers who worked for his company - who designed the structure. They also commissioned French architect Stephen Sauvestre to work on the appearance of the project in order to quell public concerns about the harsh, utilitarian nature of the original design. They ultimately beat out more than 100 other projects in a contest to choose the main attraction of the World's Fair.
Long before Ikea got into the concept, the Eiffel Tower was constructed using an innovative flat-pack technique: 18,000 parts were made in a factory outside of Paris and then erected step by step on-site using 2.5 million rivets. It became the tallest structure in the world - following in the magnificent footsteps of The Great Pyramid (455 feet), England's Lincoln Cathedral (construction started in 1311 and eventually reached 525 feet), followed by the Washington Monument (completed in 1889, and reaching 555 feet).
The EiffelTower was a piece of ultra-modern showboating and divided opinions from the start. But, despite its detractors, today it attracts some 7 million visitors a year, making it the most popular ticketed monument in the world.
At the summit (906 feet) you can take in the vertigo-inducing view across Paris and its suburbs. On the secured open-air deck you can buy a glass of champagne and check out Gustave Eiffel’s tiny secret apartment where he hosted famous guests like Thomas Edison. On the second floor (377 feet), take in wraparound views of the city. This floor also houses Jules Verne, a two-Michelin-Starred restaurant with its own elevator.
Of course, the tower got involved with the Olympic Games - a hexagonal, polished chunk of Eiffel's iron (cut from girders and other bits that were swapped out of the tower during renovations) was embedded in each medal that was hung around athletes’ necks. So, on top of making history at this year's Games, Paris medalists were able to take a bit of France and its world famous landmark home with them, too.
The massive iron structure is wind resistant and will sway during a storm. Wind isn't the only thing that can make the enormous tower move, though - the heat of the sun causes the iron to expand, making the Tower grow an inch or two during the summer months. The tower will also lean an average of six inches away from the sun, as the one side facing the direct light heats up faster than the other three sides.
Tickets go on sale on the Eiffel Tower website two months in advance; book early for high season if you can. Tickets with lift access to the top ($39 / £30) will take you all the way to the summit via the two lifts. Lift tickets to the second level, 377 feet up, are less expensive ($25/ £19) and more available.
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