For the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, the Statue of Liberty in New York, and the Colosseum in Rome, these world-famous buildings should be familiar to many people. Now they have become famous tourist attractions. But about these buildings, some of the secrets hidden in them, may not be known to many people. After all, this knowledge is still relatively unpopular. Without specialized research, these secrets are absolutely unknown. Let's talk about it.
1. The Eiffel Tower was once used as a radio transmitter
As we all know, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France was built in 1887, after its completion in 1889, it was originally scheduled to be demolished 20 years after its construction, in order to preserve the tower, Gustav Eiffel thought of using it as a laboratory for measurement and scientific experiments, installed a large number of scientific instruments, erected an antenna at the top of the tower, and funded radio experiments in 1898, the value of the Eiffel Tower in sending and receiving wireless information attracted the attention of the military. It is because of this special function that this world-famous building has been preserved.
2. Statue of Liberty base crowdfunding
The Statue of Liberty was a diplomatic gift from France to the United States. After receiving the gift, the U.S. government struggled to raise $250,000 to buy the statue's granite pedestal, but New York Governor Grover Cleveland refused to use city funds for the pedestal construction costs. More interestingly, while the cities of Baltimore, Boston, San Francisco, and Philadelphia all agreed to help, there was one precondition: the relocation of the statue itself.
When all the sources of hope disappeared, the famous New York publisher Joseph Pulitzer launched a fundraiser in his newspaper. Local children, politicians, businessmen, street cleaners, etc., each donated enthusiastically, the total amount reached 101091 US dollars, and the rest of the money was donated by publishers. The fundraiser exceeded 160,000 and was the first crowdfunding event in history.
3. Stonehenge is auctioned off
At the beginning of the last century, Stonehenge was auctioned off. This happened on September 21, 1915. Stonehenge was sold as a merchandise at auction in Salisbury, Wiltshire. Lawyer Cecil Chubb bought it for £6600 on a whim.
He had originally purchased the buildings as gifts for his wife, but she didn't like them very much. So on October 16, 1918, Cecil Chubb donated Stonehenge to the nation with a gift. As a result, he received the title of Sir Cecil Chub and was awarded the title of First Baron of Stonehenge. There are still many untold secrets about the secrets behind Stonehenge.
4. The Secret Room of Mount Rushmore National Memorial Park
Even Americans don't necessarily know about "Presidential Hill" behind Mount Rushmore National Memorial Park, where there is a mysterious vault with doors just behind Abraham Lincoln's hairline, designed by sculptor Boglum, also known as the "Hall of Records."
The Chamber preserves famous American legends and American contributions to science, art, and industry. In addition, there is a wooden box inside the chamber containing some important American documents, including the U.S. Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, and the biography of Bodrum, and other important Documents of the United States.
5. The red color of the Golden Gate Bridge is the primer.
The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, because the appearance color is orange, is particularly eye-catching, becoming a famous local landmark and attracting many tourists, but in fact, this unique color is completely accidental. Before the bridge was built, the U.S. Navy lobbied to paint the bridge with blue and yellow stripes to increase its visibility.
Architect Owen Morrow noticed that some of the steel was painted with a reddish-orange primer and thought the color looked very different, so he rejected all opinions and chose red for the entire bridge. With the wind and the sun, the red paint faded little by little and became the same color as orange, so the color of the bridge is now officially called "International Orange".
6. The hidden "time capsule" of the arc arch of St. Louis
The arch in St. Louis, Missouri, USA is 192 meters high. It is a stainless steel cantilevered building. It is also the tallest arch in the world. Built in 1965, it has always been one of the most popular tourist destinations. Unbeknownst to most visitors, however, the St. Louis Arch has a hidden "time capsule" placed on top of the arch.
A staff member claimed that the "capsule" contained more than 762,000 signatures of St. Louis citizens, including 1,500 schoolchildren, but the signature sheet would not be made public, the capsule was permanently welded inside the arch, and as long as the building existed, the so-called "time capsule" would not be exposed.
7. The basement of the Colosseum
The Colosseum is an ancient landmark of Rome. It has a history of more than 2,000 years. In addition to the imposing nature of the building, the hidden basement of the Colosseum has also attracted the attention of some people. It is understood that the first discovery was discovered by chance in the late 1990s by Heinz Jurgen Best of the German Archaeological Institute. Italian archaeologists and cultural officials have also confirmed its presence in the basement. The structure is similar to an elevator and trapdoor system.
It was used to transport deadly beasts from their lairs under the monument to the main arena. In total, there are about 24-28 elevators. Each elevator is uniquely constructed and can lift up to 600 pounds. Of course, this kind of elevator requires a lot of manpower to operate. Although the current operation looks a bit primitive, considering that this is a design from before 2000, we have to admire the ingenuity of humans at that time. The basement of the Colosseum is now also open to the public. If you are interested, you can go and experience it!