The Tower of Pisa

The Leaning Tower of  Pisa is a very unique and remarkable structure. It is located in the city of Pisa in Italy.  The heights of the two sides of the tower are not equal the thing that made it look tilted.

The building of the tower was started on August 9, 1173 for the purpose of being a bell tower and the building process was finished in 1350.

The leaning tower of Pisa is the freestanding bell tower of the cathedral of the Italian city of Pisa, and it gained its fame from being a tilted structure .

The building process of Pisa tower occurred in three stages that started in the year 1173 when few stones where bought to represent the base of the tower, then in the next year the foundation of the tower was completed. The building process of the tower lasted for 344 years because of the wars that Pisa entered with different nations the thing that stopped the construction process of the building many times . The engineer in charge when construction resumed, sought to compensate for the lean by making the new stories slightly taller on the short side.( Leaning Tower of Pisa (tower, Pisa, Italy) -- Encyclopedia Britannica. (n.d))..).

The tower began sinking after the beginning of the construction process because of the unstable sub soil .Regarding the cost of constructing the tilted tower it is estimated to be €18,523,123 .

The leaning tower still exists today, but people are prohibited from entering in it because it is in danger of falling.

 

There are different types of materials used to build the leaning tower of Pisa to include different types of  marble, cement, stone, bronze and wood.

The known designer for Pisa Tower is Banana Pisano, who is famous for bronze constructions , but there are some conflicts about the researchers regarding that, because for many years Guglielmo was considered as the architect who designed the Pisa Tower.

The height of the tower is about 55.863 meters and the height from the foundation floor is about 58.36 meters. The base is of 15.484 meters outer diameter and 7.368 inner diameters.

Regarding the problems that encountered the building process, the tower started tilting during the construction phase because the soil under the building was very soft on one side of the structure, so it couldn't support the weight of the building, during decades the tilting increased gradually, but the problem was overcome  partially by the great efforts that aimed to stabilize the structure in the 20^th century. But the building today is still  in danger of falling.

 

The leaning Tower of Pisa is one of the seven wonders of the ancient world that attracted the attention of many people for many and many years. The Tower of Pisa got its name from being the highest freestanding tower in the world for decades.

With time the importance of Pisa tower remained remarkable as an extraordinary structure with unique features although it is a result of an architectural mistake because the soil under the building was not tested well, but today buildings such as the Capital Gate in Abu Dhabi represent great competitors for it the thing that decreases its popularity as a tilted building.

The Leaning Tower But people aren’t allowed in it anymore, but it is in great danger of falling in few years from now. It is considered today as a tourist attraction and a symbol of the ancient times architecture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

 

 

Ezproxy Login. (2013, April 21). Ezproxy Login. Retrieved April 24, 2013, from http://elibrary.bigchalk.com.ezproxy.hct.ac.ae/elibweb/elib/do/document?set=search&dictionaryClick=&secondaryNav=&groupid=1&requestid=lib_standard&resultid=1&edition=&ts=EE0C34693445AEE0D08264B836341461_1367135111569&start=1&publicationId=&urn=urn%3Abigch

Leaning Tower of Pisa (tower, Pisa, Italy) -- Encyclopedia Britannica. (n.d.). Encyclopedia Britannica.RetrievedApril22,2013,from http://global.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/333926/Leaning-Tower-of-Pisa

Mulvey, B. N. (2001, December 15).  BBC News | EUROPE | Saving the Leaning Tower. BBC News - Home. Retrieved April 28, 2013, from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/793432.stm

The Leaning Tower of Pisa. (n.d.). ThinkQuest : Library. Retrieved April 20, 2013, from http://library.thinkquest.org/06aug/01215/goodleaningtower.htm

Tower of Pisa. (2001, June 17). Archidose. Retrieved April 22, 2013, from www.archidose.org/Jul00/071000.html

 

 

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