ITALY POSTCARD COLLECTION

LEANING TOWER of PISA
Campo Dei Miracoli ( The Field of Miracles) in Pisa, Italy

Italy Postcard Collections

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The Leaning Tower of Pisa or simply the Tower of Pisa is the campanile, or freestanding bell tower, of the cathedral of the Italian city of Pisa, known worldwide for its unintended tilt to one side

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is the famous bell tower, in Italy,that began to lean in the year 1173. It was built to display the wealth of the people of Pisa. The people of Pisa were sailors who had conquered lands such as Jerusalem, Carthago, Ibiza, Mallorca, Africa, Belgium, Britannia, Norway, Spain, and Morocco. Their only real enemies were from the city of Florence. They needed the tower to show the people of Florence how well they were doing. Architects realized that the tower was leaning when they had finished building one and one half meters of the third floor. The damage was irreversible so they halted construction until 1272 because war broke out against Florence. All of the money was spent on warfare and there was not much left for the tower. The lean was caused by the sandy and marshy soil that the tower was built on. During construction from 1272 till 1275, the tower continued to lean. In 1275 war with Florence broke out again. After this they began to construct the belfry, credit for which is often given to Tommaso, son of Andrea Pisano. The construction was believed to have been completed in 1350. In 1392, causing great humiliation, Pisa was sold to Florence and the residents were forced into slavery. They never managed to gain back the wealth that they had in the early years.

Tower Collections

LEANING TOWER of PISA

Campo Dei Miracoli ( The Field of Miracles) in Pisa, Italy

Italy Postcard Collections
World / Countries / Cities famous landmark
Tourist Attractions 

Thank You Victoria Jane Lee of Malaysia
Date Received: Aug. 08, 2013
 

The Leaning Tower of Pisa (Italian: Torre pendente di Pisa) or simply the Tower of Pisa (Torre di Pisa) is the campanile, or freestanding bell tower, of the cathedral of the Italian city of Pisa, known worldwide for its unintended tilt to one side. It is situated behind the Cathedral and is the third oldest structure in Pisa's Cathedral Square (Piazza del Duomo) after the Cathedral and the Baptistry. The tower's tilt began during construction, caused by an inadequate foundation on ground too soft on one side to properly support the structure's weight. The tilt increased in the decades before the structure was completed, and gradually increased until the structure was stabilized (and the tilt partially corrected) by efforts in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. The height of the tower is 55.86 metres (183.27 feet) from the ground on the low side and 56.67 metres (185.93 feet) on the high side. The width of the walls at the base is 2.44 m (8 ft 0.06 in). Its weight is estimated at 14,500 metric tons (16,000 short tons). The tower has 296 or 294 steps; the seventh floor has two fewer steps on the north-facing staircase. Prior to restoration work performed between 1990 and 2001, the tower leaned at an angle of 5.5 degrees, but the tower now leans at about 3.99 degrees. This means that the top of the tower is displaced horizontally 3.9 metres (12 ft 10 in) from where it would be if the structure were perfectly vertical.