Since the Paleolithic era, towers have been built by humans. One of the first city walls ever built, the ancient city walls of Jericho now included a stone tower. Later civilizations frequently built watchtowers as part of their fortifications to provide their guards with a high, secure vantage point from which to survey the surrounding area.
Over the past two thousand years, a wide variety of towers, including bell towers, clock towers, minarets, and communication towers, have been built. A list of the most recognizable towers in the world:
14. Axum Stelae
The Axum kingdom’s initial capital was located in the northern Ethiopian city of Axum. Axum ruled the region as a maritime and trading power from around 400 BC to 1000 AD. The majority of the town’s Aksumite monuments are stelae.
The tallest standing tower is King Ezana’s Stele, measuring 24 meters (79 feet). Another stele that was taken down by the Italian army and measured 24.6 meters (81 feet) high was returned to Ethiopia in 2008 and erected there. The stelae, which are thought to be funeral monuments for the ancient kings of Axum and date from roughly 300 to 500 AD, may have had tombs beneath them.
13. Galata Tower
The Galata area in Istanbul, Turkey is home to the old stone Galata Tower. With its cone-capped cylinder on top, the tower, one of the most recognizable landmarks in the city, towers over the skyline and is 67 meters (220 feet) tall.
The tower was built in 1348 as a part of the defenses surrounding the Genoese colony in Constantinople. There is currently a restaurant and café on its upper floors with a breathtaking view of Istanbul and the Bosphorus.
12. Svanetian Towers
The remote Georgian province of Svaneti is dotted with quaint settlements, cultivated cornfields, and old turrets. The legendary towers were built as a line of defense against northern tribes and avalanches. Each Svan family typically had its own tower.
Everyone who found refuge there did so by climbing a rope stair that could later be pulled up behind them. They also proved to be essential during heavy snowfalls. The ninth century saw the creation of the first Svanetian towers.
11. The Two Towers of Bologna
The Lord of the Rings movie is not associated with the names of the two iconic towers of Bologna, Italy, which were built between 1109 and 1119. The Asinelli Skyscraper, which soars 97.2 meters, is Bologna’s tallest tower. The Garisenda Tower was originally 60 meters long, but in the 14th century, it was shrunk to 48 meters to make it safer.
10. Minaret of Jam
The Minaret of Jam is a mosque component that was built in the 12th century and is located in a remote area of western Afghanistan. A sudden flood caused damage to the mosque, and the Mongols eventually demolished the area around the minaret. Given this and the harsh environment, it’s a small miracle that the 62-meter (203-foot) tall tower is still standing.
9. Belem Tower
Belém Tower was built as part of a defense system to protect Lisbon early in the 16th century. It now stands as a memorial to Portugal’s Age of Discovery and was the departure point for many explorers who sought out new trade routes.
8. Qutb Minar
The first Muslim governor of Delhi, Qutb al-Din Aybak, gave the order to build the Qutb Minar in India in 1193. Qutb al-Din Aybak died with only the base completed, despite his goal to surpass the Afghan Minaret of Jam.
His successors continued construction, and in 1386 the top floor was completed. The minaret rises 379 steps to a height of 72 meters (237.8 feet), making it the tallest brick minaret in the world.
7. Three Pagodas
Despite having experienced numerous natural and man-made disasters, The Three Pagodas, which are located approximately 1.5 km (0.9 miles) northwest of the historic city of Dali, are among the best-preserved Buddhist structures in China.
The middle pagoda, one of China’s tallest structures, stands 69.6 meters (227 feet) tall and was built between 824 and 840 AD by king Quan Fengyou. A century or so later, the two additional pagodas, which stand 42.19 meters (140 feet) tall, were built.
6. CN Tower
Downtown Toronto is home to the CN Tower, which is Canada’s most recognizable landmark. The communication tower was built by Canadian National Railroad between 1973 and 1976. It held the title of tallest building in the world for more than 30 years at 553.33 meters (1,815.4 feet) before being surpassed by the Burj Dubai.
5. Spiral Minaret
The Spiral Minaret, sometimes called the Malwiya Minaret, is a part of the Great Mosque of Samarra in Iraq. Among the largest mosques in the world. A bridge formerly connected the mosque and the minaret.
The ascending spiral conical design of the sandstone tower, also known as a minaret, which was constructed between 848 and 852 and stands out from other minarets. Its height is 162 feet (52 meters). The top of the tower was destroyed by insurgents in 2005, leaving behind broken brick and clay.
4. San Gimignano
Some people refer to San Gimignano, a hamlet in Tuscany, as “the medieval Manhatten” because of its 14 stone towers. At the height of San Gimignano’s power and prosperity, more than 70 turrets were built to defend the town from invading invaders. After the plague decimated San Gimignano in 1348, the city’s power declined, but this scared off potential adversaries and helped the city’s famed towers survive.
3. Big Ben
The Big Ben Clock Tower, one of the most well-known tourist destinations in London, is commemorating its 150th birthday this year. In reality, Big Ben is the name of the 13-ton bell that resides inside the clock tower; Sir Benjamin Hall is credited with placing the original order for the bell. largest free-standing clock tower, third-largest
2. Leaning Tower of Pisa
Over a period of about 177 years, the famed Pisa Tower was built. The tower began to sink due to a poor foundation soon after construction started in 1173 and went unattended for nearly a century.
The engineers’ choice to construct higher floors with one side taller than the other to account for the tilt allowed the tower to be finished in the second half of the 14th century. Since 2001, those wishing to climb the tower of Pisa’s legendary city can do so once more.
1. Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is one of the most well-known landmarks in the world and a symbol of France and Paris. To act as the entrance arch for the 1889 Paris International Exposition, Gustave Eiffel built the tower.
Up until the completion of the Chrysler Building in New York in 1930, it stood at a height of 300 meters (984 feet), making it the tallest tower in the world. With more than 200,000,000 visitors since it was built, the Eiffel Tower is the most visited paid monument in the world.