Recently, peculiar scale ratings of well-known structures have begun to gain popularity. Surely each of us at least once came across infographics, where the sizes of different architectural structures relative to each other were noted . It is really interesting what sizes modern colossuses have. For example, what is higher - the Statue of Liberty or the Eiffel Tower? Let's try to figure it out.
Eiffel, or How it all began
Alexander Gustave Eiffel had German roots, the name of his ancestors sounded like Bonikhausen. In Dijon, the region in France where the famous engineer was born, they moved in the beginning of the 18th century and immediately after the move changed their name to Eiffel - this sound was more pleasant to the French ear and, therefore, easier to pronounce. Later it will be interesting for the whole world to find out how high the Eiffel Tower is the work of an engineer, and in childhood no one could discern a future genius in Gustave. As a child, he was completely inconspicuous, did not stand out from the crowd of Dijon boys. The childhood of the famous scientist was spent in a picturesque area, where the whole atmosphere was relaxed and stimulated little to scientific activity.
Student years
In the province of Dijon, where the engineer's family lived, there was a lyceum with a technical slant, and young Gustave graduated from it. After that, it was decided to send the gifted boy to Paris to try his hand at enrolling in a polytechnic school - a very famous and respected institution of those times. But, alas, Gustave was expected to fail, though not in the technical disciplines, with this, everything was fine with him. Our hero summed up the banal eloquence. That's what he never learned to own, although later he was a public person.
I had to go to another institution, called the Paris School of Arts and Crafts. Later, the great Eiffel himself confesses that this turn of fate was very successful for him, and will appreciate the years spent in this school. The main emphasis was made by teachers on the fact that students developed the ability to create, and all technical aspects were only an auxiliary matter. Then no one knew what was higher - the Statue of Liberty or the Eiffel Tower, because these structures did not exist at that time.
Eiffel's career start
The first work of a genius was an assistant in a design firm called "Charles Nevyu." He was very appreciated by the employer and promoted through the ranks. This company produced bridges. There was a huge demand for them at that time, because railways were actively laid across the country. Just three years later, Gustave became a companion, but his salary did not suit him, and soon parting with the employer followed. A man who did not yet know what was above - the Statue of Liberty or the Eiffel Tower, praised the beauty of metal structures. He was sure that not only strength was in them, but also beauty. The young engineer decided to establish his own company and continue to engage in the construction of bridges.
Ideas for creating masterpieces
It so happened that Eiffel had to leave his homeland for three whole years. Critics attacked the engineer and his structures in the country, as he was the first to build bridges in a certain way. The engineer had to listen to a lot of unpleasant things. At that time, in France, there were several collapses of railway bridges, as a result of which there were many victims, and here the real persecution began.
There, on a trip, Gustave will have the idea of creating the most famous building in France. Perhaps at that time the engineer did not yet imagine what the height of the Eiffel Tower would be in meters, but he already knew exactly what its design should be. To create a tower of this type, the genius was inspired by the research of a Swiss doctor who was able to study the structure of the human femur and establish: the presence of many cartilages distributes the load in such a way that this not-so-thick bone is able to withstand the whole body. As a result of brilliant ideas, the tallest building in the world at that time appeared - the Eiffel Tower. Its design was developed so ingeniously that for more than a century of history it did not need major repairs.
"Daughters" of the Eiffel
What could be common between Americans and French? It turns out that national symbols, the Statue of Liberty, too, was also created according to the drawings of the famous Eiffel. Probably not everyone knows how tall the Statue of Liberty is. She is 93 meters, but her French sister is much higher - as much as 324 meters. It still remains a mystery how one person managed to create such wonderful structures that became symbols of countries. And to do this is not from noble marble or gold, but from simple metal. It does not matter what is above - the Statue of Liberty or the Eiffel Tower, it is important that Gustave Eiffel did not just create designs, he created the symbols of the era.