Leaning Tower Of Pisa: Amazing Facts Revealed For Travel Buffs

The leaning tower of Pisa is one of the most visited attractions. It is also a part of the well-known and renowned seven wonders of the world!

You can find the location of the leaning tower of Pisa in the quaint country of Italy. The Italian city of Pisa attracts tourists and visitors all year round, posing for photos that make it look as if they're pushing back the leaning tower of Pisa. This mind-blowing structure that seems to defy even the laws of physics has made it into the Guinness World Records too for being the most tilted structure to be found anywhere in the world. It held this prestigious title till it was discovered in 2007 that the leaning tower of Suurhusen, which is found in a village in the north-western village in Germany, tilts more. The leaning tower of Pisa, or Torre Pendente di Pisa, which is its Italian name, was built approximately in the time period between 1173 and 1399 and took almost two centuries to complete. In 1173, the construction of a white marble bell tower began for the cathedral complex in Pisa. This bell tower was rung for Catholic rituals during medieval times and is part of the Cathedral of Pisa called Campo Dei Miracoli or Piazza Dei Miracoli. If you translate this to its literal meaning, you'd find that it means 'field of miracles'! The tower's bell chamber consists of seven bells, with the largest bell weighing about 8,000 lb (3,600 kg)!

This stunning monument is located between the Arno and Serchio rivers in Tuscany, Central Italy. At a glance, this leaning tower that consists of 207 columns arranged around eight stories looks like a well-decorated cake that was knocked over by a clumsy guest! You may want to know what it is that makes this tower actually lean, and you have probably often heard others tell you that the tower's tilt is because of its age. However, this is not true. When the tower was initially constructed, it did not have a tilt. It was only in 1178 that onlookers started noticing a slight lean in the tower when the second floor was being constructed, afraid it would collapse, and that this was due to the marshy land. By the time all the involved builders finished building the third part of the eight stories after five years, the tower's foundation began to settle inconsistently on the soft ground beneath it.

Giovanni di Simone, who was the chief engineer for the tower of Pisa, tried to compensate for the tilt of the tower by adding extra masonry to its short side, but this only led to the tower tilting more! The tower stands at a height of 183 ft (55.8 m) from the ground on its low side and 185 ft (56.6 m) on its high side. The leaning tower also has a staircase inside it, consisting of 296 steps!

A fun fact that will completely shock you is that there is a group of engineers that come and measure the tilt of the tower every year. Of late, it has been found that the tower has been correcting itself slightly ever since engineers dug tunnels and drains around the north side to make the water flow into wells. Nonetheless, experts say that the leaning tower will continue to tilt at least for the next 200 years.

If you enjoyed this article on amazing facts about the leaning tower of Pisa, be sure to check out our other articles on the lighthouse of Alexandria, interesting facts for kids, and the Lake Pontchartrain causeway facts that you are sure to love!

Location Of Leaning Tower Of Pisa

The leaning tower of Pisa is located in Italy. However, there are a few more lesser-known facts about the location of this beautiful monument.

• The leaning tower of Pisa attracts a bucketload of visitors all year round who come to take a look and pose for pictures at this astounding structure that has a tilt to it.
• The true architect of this structure still remains a mystery to this very date!
• The leaning tower of Pisa is located just behind the Pisa cathedral or the Piazza Dei Miracoli in the city of Pisa in Tuscany, Central Italy. It is situated between the Arno and Serchio rivers in Tuscany.
• The leaning tower is actually a white marble bell tower that consists of seven bells that were rung for the catholic services held in the cathedral.
• Apart from this tower, there are several other towers in Pisa with a tilt to it- the bell tower at the Church of St. Michele dei Scalzi, the bell tower at the St. Nicola church.

Origin And History Of Leaning Tower Of Pisa

• Known among the Italians as the Torre Pendente di Pisa, its construction started in 1173 and went on for about two centuries! Completed in the 14th century, the Pisa tower initially stood straight, but it was in 1178 that people started noticing that the tower was beginning to lean slightly, and this shocked the Italians as they thought it would eventually collapse.
• However, the Pisa leaning tower has been tilting for almost 800 years, and experts claim that it will continue leaning for the next 200 years too!
• The main reason the tower has a lean is that its construction was made on marshy land and soft ground that had a dense clay mixture.
• The whole cathedral complex in which the tower is built is called the Square of Miracles. It consists of a baptistery, a cathedral, a cemetery, and the leaning tower. It is believed by some that the cathedral and the baptistery are slowly sinking too. Galileo was baptized in 1564 in the baptistery!
• The tower consists of seven bells and a staircase inside it that visitors and tourists can access.

Architecture Style Of The Leaning Tower Of Pisa

• The architectural style of the leaning tower of Pisa is specifically referred to as Romanesque architecture.
• It is an architectural style that was very common in Medieval Europe and consists of semi-circle arches.
• The leaning tower of Pisa in Italy also has touches of Gothic styles combined with the Romanesque style.
• The original architects of the building didn't want the tower to lean but the tilt, which happened accidentally, launched the tower into the spotlight all across the globe and made its way into the list of UNESCO world heritage sites!

Specialty Of Leaning Tower Of Pisa

• The specialty of the leaning tower of Pisa that is located between the Arno and Serchio rivers in Tuscany, Italy, is its unique lean and the manner of its construction.
• With its construction finally completed in the 14th century, records indicate that some of the engineers and architects who worked on the tower were Bonanno Pisano, Giovanni Pisano, Gherardo di Gherardo, and Giovanni di Simone.