Construction of Pisa

Begun in 1173, the process by which the leaning tower of Pisa had transformed into the
monument as we know it today was long and drawn out. In fact, it took over 800 years from
start to finish.

Intricate carvings, columns, arch's, and other design elements are incorporated into the
construction of the tower. For medieval Europe, these types of design themes and
construction processes were way ahead of their time, resulting in a structure that has
remained timeless in appearance through the ages.

covered in marble. Ironically, the limestone is probably why the tower has not cracked and
broken- the rock is flexible enough that it can withstand the pressures placed on it by the lean.
It is doubtful that the original architect, Bonanno Pisano, had any idea that the qualities of
limestone would play a role in preventing its ultimate collapse.

Originally, the leaning tower of Pisa was to be a bell tower for a cathedral. Five years after
the initial construction of two floors it began to lean once the third floor was completed. At
the time the cause of the lean was not known, though it was discovered many years later that
the lean was the result of the tower being built on a dense clay mixture that was unable to
fully support the weight of the tower.

As you can imagine, the construction process was halted for nearly 100 years. The architects
of the time hoped that the soul would settle and harden over time, allowing them to resume
construction and correct the lean.

Giovanni di Simone, Alessandro Della Gherardesca, and Benito Mussolini

100 long years passed before Giovanni di Simone constructed four additional floors. He had
also intended to counteract the lean during the construction process but, like the original
architects, made a critical miscalculation. The result was the four floors being built crooked,
causing the tower to shift even more.

In 1372 the bell chamber was finally attached to the leaning tower of Pisa, and there were no
further modifications or additions made until the 19 th century.

Alessandro Della Gherardesca decided to increase the value of the tower to the tourism
industry by digging a pathway around the base of the tower that would allow tourists to see
the detail that was put into the base. This took place in 1838, and resulted in the tower leaning
even more when Gherardesca's workers struck water, flooding the ditches and increasing the
tilt.

Benito Mussolini was the next to try his hand stabilizing the tower in 1934. He felt that the
tower was an embarrassment to Italy and that it must be corrected and returned to a
perpendicular state. As a result of his orders, 361 holes were drilled into the foundation of the
tower and 90 tonnes of cement were used to fill them. The cement, rather than form up in the
holes and act as a counterweight, sank into the clay beneath the structure, causing the tower
to lean over even more.

End of Construction
The Leaning Tower of Pisa was closed for construction in 1990 and was then reopened once
it was safe for everyone to tour. From start to finish, the leaning tower of Pisa took over 800
years to be constructed- probably the longest construction time in the world!

History of pisa

Humans make mistakes, after all, no human is perfect. One mistake made in the 11th century
resulted in a 14,500 ton leaning tower. This miscalculation would later become a symbol of
civic pride, but tell that to the man who designed it!

The learning tower of Pisa, known as Torre Pendente di Pisa in Italian, is different than most
medieval architecture. This particular section won't cover the highly advanced construction
techniques that were used, it is important to mention how this tower's design is significant.

The Leaning Tower is the third oldest building on Pisa's Piazza del Duomo (cathedral
square), the Cathedral and Baptistry were first.

Utilizing many columns and archs, this tower represents an advanced understanding of
weight and load characteristics, showing the Italian architectures' knowledge.

What the architect didn't account for however, was the base of the tower being built on a
dense section of clay.

The Early Years

The construction of the Tower of Pisa began on August 9, 1173. Originally designed to be a
bell tower, the tower actually stood upright for over 5 years, but just after the completion of
the third floor (1178) it began to lean. The citizens of Italy were shocked as it began to lean
ever so slightly.

The foundation of the tower, only 3 meter deep, was built on a dense clay mixture and
impacted the soil. As it turned out, the clay was not nearly as strong enough as required to
hold the tower upright, and so the weight of the tower began to diffuse downward until it had
found the weakest point.

After this, construction halted for 100 years. The government hoped that the soil would
settle, giving it enough strength to hold the weight of the tower. As well, the country was
focused on its war with Genoa, which was quite brutal and ravaging at the time.

Construction Resumes
The Tower at Night

After the 100 year hiatus, Giovanni di Simone stepped forward in 1272 and began to add four
more floors to the tower. He actually managed to cause the tower to lean over more when he
tried to compensate for the original lean by making one side of the upper floors taller than the
other.

In 1284 construction was halted again, this time because of the Battle of Meloria, in which
the Pisans were defeated by the Genoans.

In 1319 the 7th floor was finished. The bell-chamber was added in 1372, and then the tower
was left alone until the 19th century.

In 1838 Alessandro Della Gherardesca, an established architect, dug a pathway near the base
of the tower so that people could see the intricately crafted base. The tower began to lean
even more as a result, likely due to the decreased amount of support available within the soil.

World War Two

This war was brutal and bloody for the entire world, and its effects were felt everywhere from
America to rural Africa. In relation to the leaning tower of Pisa, however, it is pure luck.

When the American soldiers invaded, they were ordered to destroy any and all buildings in
order to neutralize the thread of enemy snipers. There were no exceptions to this rule, and
hundreds of buildings were blown up as the forces steadily advanced over the Italian
countryside. The only thing which prevented the leaning tower of Pisa from being destroyed
was a retreat that took place shortly after the arrival of the Americans, necessitating no need
to destroy the national monument.
Steadier than Ever

The leaden counterweight

In 1964, Italy asked help to prevent the Leaning Tower from toppling. They wanted to keep
the lean though, because of its importance for Pisa's tourism. A team of engineers and
historians came together on the Azores to discuss the problem. As a temporary measure, a
leaden counterweight (800 tonnes) was installed.

In 1987, the Leaning Tower of Pisa was declared a Unesco World Heritage Site, along with
the entire Piazza Del Duomo.

In 1990, the Leaning Tower was closed. The bells were removed and the tower was anchored.

Reopened in 2001 for tourists, the leaning tower of Pisa is finally sturdy and safe. Naturally,
climbing to the top of the tower has become the most popular tourist activity within reason,
and for good reason: with a history as deep and as wrought with unfortunate circumstance as
this one, it's hard not to get excited about.

To Get You Thinking

Surely at some point in your life youve thought about the places you would like to visit one
day. Among those places are probably a couple of well-known tourist destinationsthe
Eiffel Tower, the Great Wall of China, Machu Picchuthe possibilities are endless. Have
you ever considered the Tower of Pisa, or should I say the Leaning Tower of Pisa? Think
about why it has not fallen over yet. In order to understand the mystery of why the tower is
still standing today, lets discuss the geotechnical concepts and history of the structure.

The Importance of What You Cant See

The Leaning Tower of Pisa is currently standing, leaning, but standing. We have geotechnical
engineers to thank for that! One of the things geotechnical engineers are responsible for is the
design of the structures foundation, such as the Leaning Towers. Typically, foundations are
underground, and geotechnical engineers are the people who study the properties and
behaviors of the soil. The foundation is very important even though it is not seen. In order to
construct a proper foundation, the strength of the soil and the possibility of differential
settlement must be taken into account. Two concepts that will help understand foundation
problems associated with Leaning Tower, and why it is still standing, are the settlement and
strength of soils.

Settlements

To begin, lets discuss settlement. There are different types of settlement, for example
uniform and differential settlement. Figure 1 below illustrates these two types of settlements.
In a uniform settlement, the structure moves down evenly. In differential settlement, the
structure moves down on one side more than the other. The amount of settlement that is
acceptable depends on various things, such as the type of structure, the equipment it will
hold, and the type of soil its on.

Figure 1: Types of settlement (The Civil

Builders, nd)

Soil Strength

The strength of the soil beneath a structure is extremely important. When the soil is weak, it
cannot support a heavy structure. One thing to keep in mind is that the strength of the soil can
change with time. What does this mean? Lets take clay as an example. Clay can initially be
saturated, which means that its pores are filled with water. As time passes, the clay drains,
and the amount of water decreases, leading to more compact and stronger clay.

Building a Bit at a Time

Now that you know a little about settlements and strength of soil, lets discuss the history of
the Tower of Pisa. As you might already know, the Tower is located in Pisa, Italy. Its
construction started in 1173, which means that it is 872 years old! Actually, that is not quite
true because the Tower was not built all at once. Figure 2 below indicates the progress of
construction.
 Figure 2: Construction stages of the Leaning Tower (Blogspot, nd)

The first stage of construction, consisting of the bottom three stories, lasted approximately
five years. During this time, the Tower had already begun to tilt! Construction stopped due to
various wars, which benefited the structure because this gave the underlying soils time to
gain strength (Burland, 2009). This shows that soil can get stronger with time, just as we
mentioned during our discussion about soil strength! About a century passed before
construction resumed. At this point, the people who were working on the structure tried to
compensate for the tilt. However, this only resulted in the structure having a more tilted
shape; we can say it was similar to a banana shape. The third and final stage of construction
occurred in 1360 (almost 200 years after initial construction started). During this phase, the
bell tower was added with a tilt of 3 from the vertical (Burland, 2009).

The Power of Time

What would happen if the Tower of Pisa had been built all at once in the 1170s? More than
likely, the structure would have collapsed because the soil would not have been strong
enough to withstand all the weight! The soil would have been undrained, or saturated, making
it weak in the short term. As previously mentioned, the time in between construction phases
allowed the soil supporting the tower to become stronger by compacting and draining.

So if the soil got stronger, what caused the structure to tilt over? It is a concept you learned
about earlierdifferential settlement. The structures tilt occurred because the south side
settled more than the north side due to the weight of the building compacting the soil
(Burland, 2009).

Tower Forever Leaning

By the 19th century, the Leaning Tower of Pisa had settled about 2.5 meters or 8.2 feet. Thats
a significant amount! The largest measured tilt the tower ever experienced has been 5.5.
When you try to draw a 5.5 angle with a protractor, it may not seem like much. But when
you extend that line up the entire height of the tower, the tilt becomes very noticeable. When
it comes to a structure tilting, that amount is a lot.

With the experienced settlement and tilt, the structure needed to be stabilized. In 1990, the
Leaning Tower of Pisa officially closed for repairs. Many logical solutions were proposed,
but some were silly, like tying helium balloons to the top of the structure (Burland, 2009).
Obviously, that idea was not taken seriously. In 1993, 600 tons of weights were applied to
the north side of the tower to temporarily stabilize it. This solution was effective, but
something more permanent had to be done.

Of the numerous solutions proposed, the one that would end up reducing the tilt to 5
consisted of extracting soil by drilling diagonal borings as shown in Figure 3 below.
 Figure 3: Diagonal borings drilled to stabilize
the tower (Fly Youth, nd)

The tower has to keep a tilt or else it would no longer be the Leaning Tower of Pisa. If the
structure were to become simply the Tower of Pisa, then the number of tourists in Pisa, Italy
would decrease; therefore, the tower will forever be leaning.

Conclusion

At this point, you may know enough about the Leaning Tower of Pisa to give a tour of it
yourself. You can now explain why differential settlement gives the tower its tilts. You also
know that the soils strengthening properties with respect to time is the reason the Leaning
Tower of Pisa is still standing today. However, it is important to take these lessons and learn
from them when designing future structures. Though many people do not think about the
work that goes into a foundation, it is crucial when considering the number of problems that
could occur during construction. Luckily, this engineering problem turned the tower into one
of the most famous towers in the world!