Who Designed the Leaning Tower of Pisa
The Leaning Tower of Pisa is one of the most well known landmarks in the world. It is a belltower located in Italy that started to sink into the ground during construction. Despite attempts to correct this, the tower has continued to slowly sink which has caused the tower to lean considerably. Despite the obvious engineering failure the site has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in Italy and tourists flock to photograph and climb this unusual structure. In 1987 the tower was made a UNESCO World Heritage site as a part of the Piazza del Duomo (Cathedral Square) site. Let’s find out who designed the tower.
Who designed the Leaning Tower of Pisa?
The architect who designed the tower has long been disputed. For a long time the design was thought to have been provided by Guglielmo and Bonanno Pisano. However, more recent studies have shown that Diotisalvi was probably the architect for the tower.
Construction on the tower began in 1173 and was halted only a few years later due to battles in the region. These continued battles meant that the tower was left with only 3 floors for about 100 years. It is believed that the tower would have collapsed had building continued, but this didn’t end up occurring because the soil was able to settle during the break in construction!
In an effort to correct the lean architect Giovanni di Simone, under the direction of Gioanni Pisano, built the upper floors with one side higher than the other. This construction began in 1272 and it did not correct the issue. The final floor was designed and built by Tommaso di Andrea Pisano. This stage was completed in 1319 and the bell tower was added in 1372.
Did you know?
In 2001, after more than 10 years of stabilization work, the structure was declared safe for the public. It is estimated that it will remain relatively stable for around 300 years.
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