Why does the Leaning Tower of Pisa lean and is it being straightened?
One of the world's most famous landmarks has been tilting for centuries
ONE of the world's most famous landmarks is a delight to millions of jovial and creative tourists each year.
The Leaning Tower of Pisa has left people scratching their heads for centuries - exactly how does it not topple over? Here's what you need to know.
Why does the Leaning Tower of Pisa lean?
One of Italy's most famous landmarks, and definitely Pisa's, began sinking into its Tuscan surroundings almost immediately after being erected.
Construction of the Unesco World Heritage Site began in 1173 in the then maritime republic of Pisa, but the sandy soil meant it quickly began to tilt.
Is the Tower being straightened?
The Leaning Tower of Pisa is actually defying its name, or at least beginning to.
The structure has lost approximately 1.5 inches of its tilt over the past 17 years.
The four centimetre movement comes after extensive consolidation work done between 1993 and 2001, which was required to reverse its slump and keep the tower upright.
It means that the building. which attracts thousands of tourists every day, is back to the tilt it had at the beginning of the 19th century, according to professor Salvatore Settis, who leads the surveillance group of the monument.
He said:"The reduction of the tilt will not last forever -- but it's very significant and now we have good reasons to hope that the tower can last for at least another 200 years."
The complex work involved removing soil from the opposite side of the lean in order to reverse its trajectory.
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The operation forced the closure of the Tower to visitors for nearly a decade.
It was reopened in late 2001.
The tower is constantly monitored, and the data examined by a surveillance committee which meets every three months.