Macau’s Eiffel Tower “tops out”

Macau’s newest iconic structure celebrated a major milestone late yesterday with the Parisian’s replica Eiffel Tower reaching its highest point with the placement of its dome and lantern structure.

The “topping out” ceremony saw the Eiffel Tower reach its maximum height of just over 160 meters ahead off its official opening in 2016. When completed, the tower will feature a number of the ornamental touches of its counterpart in Paris, including ornate detailing such as cornice scrolls, balustrades, gusset plates, lattices, staircases and mesh screens around the observation decks. A light show will also light up the tower each night.

Notably though, Macau’s version is made of steel – more than 2,800 tonnes of it – instead of the original’s wrought iron and is designed to withstand the strong winds of Macau’s typhoon season.

Macau’s replica Eiffel Tower is the equivalent height of a 38-storey building and features 853,000 decorative rivers, 6,600 lights and 26 kilometers of electrical cabling. It is also the tallest and most realistic of all of the world’s Eiffel Tower replicas.