ARCHITECTURE · 1888
The Eiffel Tower Before It Was the Eiffel Tower
A construction photograph from 1888 captures Paris in the middle of an experiment that would become one of the world’s most recognizable landmarks.
PUBLIC DOMAINLouis-Emile Durandelle · Wikimedia Commons. View image record and licensing →
A monument under construction
Today, the Eiffel Tower is so familiar that it can seem almost timeless. This photograph breaks that illusion. In 1888 the structure was still an enormous construction site, and the future landmark looked more like a piece of engineering than a symbol of Paris.
Engineering becomes spectacle
The tower was designed by engineers working for Gustave Eiffel’s company for the 1889 Exposition Universelle, which celebrated the centenary of the French Revolution. Its iron lattice was both structural and visual: thousands of metal pieces were assembled into a form that appeared light from a distance while carrying tremendous loads.
The city as a work in progress
Louis-Emile Durandelle photographed the construction as it progressed. Architectural photography was particularly valuable in this period because large construction projects were difficult for the public to understand from ground level. A photograph could isolate the geometry, record stages of work and preserve a visual history of an unfinished building.
Why it matters
The tower was controversial. Critics questioned its appearance and its place in Paris. Yet the same qualities that made it divisive—height, exposed iron and engineering made visible—helped turn it into a spectacle. When the exposition opened in 1889, visitors could see modern industry presented as architecture.
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