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Pisa Pisa Torre / Campanile / Leaning Tower of Pisa Information
(Pisa, Italy IT)



Attractions in Pisa, Italy IT
Pisa Torre / Campanile / Leaning Tower of Pisa

Address:
Piazza del Duomo
Pisa
Italy IT (Italia)

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is known throughout the world and has become Pisa's most popular tourist attraction and famous landmark. Originally built as the bell tower of the adjacent Pisa cathedral, the Leaning Tower of Pisa (Torre Pendente) almost seems to defy gravity.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa has always tilted and who was to blame for the Leaning Tower of Pisa is a mystery, although ironically the tower's acute lean has resulted in Pisa become a major tourist location in Italy. For more than 800 years, engineers in Pisa have been trying to overcome the lean, in the fear that the beloved Leaning Tower of Pisa might eventually collapse.

Construction of the Leaning Tower of Pisa commenced in 1173 and when the builders reached the third level in 1185, the tower began to subside due to poor foundations. Masons decided to insert wedge-shaped stones to correct the problem, although this resulted in the Leaning Tower of Pisa starting to tilt the other way.

At a loss as to how this problem could be overcome, worked stopped for almost 100 years, finally being resumed in 1275. A further three uneven storeys were added to the Leaning Tower of Pisa, tilted in an attempt to counterbalance the extreme lean, giving the Leaning Tower of Pisa its unusual 'banana' shape.

Finally in 1350 a lopsided Gothic belfry was added at the very top of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, making the Leaning Tower of Pisa 51 metres / 170 feet tall. Over the years, many attempts have been made to correct the tilt of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, most of which have actually made the problem considerably worse. By 1990, the top was leaning more than 5 metres / 16 feet from vertical and the Leaning Tower of Pisa was finally closed to all visitors and tourists in Pisa.

A decision was made to stabilise the Leaning Tower of Pisa, by adding 800 tonnes of lead weights to the northern side, and at last this proved successful. In 1995, engineers drilled down next to the Leaning Tower of Pisa, although overnight this caused the tower to lurch dangerously. Steel cables were added in 1998, stretching from the north side of the square, in an attempt to hold the tower steady. Finally, rotating drills removed small amounts of silt and sand from areas around the base of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, correcting its lean and allowing it to settle into its 1870 position. Work it still continuing to improve the angle of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, although the tourist board are insistent that the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the number one tourist attraction in Pisa, should always remain leaning.






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