Nevyansk tower at dusk

The Leaning Tower of Nevyansk (Невьянская башня in Russian) is a tower in a town of Nevyansk in the Sverdlovsk Oblast in Russia, built in the 18th century. Its construction was funded by Peter the Great’s associate and a famous Russian manufacturer Akinfiy Demidov. Image File history File links Leaning Tower of Nevyansk. ... Image File history File links Leaning Tower of Nevyansk. ... A tower is a high structure, usually man-made. ... Sverdlovsk Oblast (Russian: Свердло́вская о́бласть; tr. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... Peter I Emperor and Autocrat of All Russia Peter I (Pyotr Alekseyvich) (9 June 1672–8 February 1725 [30 May 1672–28 January 1725 O.S.1]) ruled Russia from 7 May (27 April O.S.) 1682 until his death. ... Manufacturing is the transformation of raw materials into finished goods for sale, or intermediate processes involving the production or finishing of semi-manufactures. ... Coat of arms of the Demidov family. ...

The height of the tower is 57.5 m from the ground. The base of the tower is a 9.5 x 9.5 m square. According to recent measurements, the deviation of the top part of the tower from the right angle is currently 2.20 m. There is still no evidence to this day as to when exactly the Nevyansk Tower was constructed. Russian historians believe that it was built between 1725 and 1732. Also, there is no information about the architect of this unique edifice. M is the thirteenth letter of the Latin alphabet. ... A square as a geometric shape is described and illustrated at square (geometry). ... This article is about angles in geometry. ... Events February 8 - Catherine I became empress of Russia February 20 - The first reported case of white men scalping Native Americans takes place in New Hampshire colony. ... Events February 23 - First performance of Handels Orlando, in London June 9 - James Oglethorpe is granted a royal charter for the colony of Georgia. ... Architect at his drawing board, 1893 An architect/Building designer is a person involved in the planning, designing and oversight of a buildings construction, whose role is to guide decisions affecting those building aspects that are of aesthetic, cultural or social concern. ...

The purpose of the tower

During the Soviet times, Nevyansk was a closed city, which prevented archaeologists from properly studying the tower. They have lifted the veil of secrecy only in the early 2000s. Soviet redirects here. ... A closed city is a city with travel and residency restrictions in the former Soviet Union, or in a CIS country. ... Archaeology or sometimes in American English archeology (from the Greek words αρχαίος = ancient and λόγος = word/speech) is the study of human cultures through the recovery, documentation and analysis of material remains, including architecture, artefacts, biofacts, human remains, and landscapes. ... Saddam Hussein shortly after his capture Major controversy over U.S. presidential election, 2000 September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on New Yorks World Trade Center and Virginias Pentagon killing almost 3000 people. ...

Historians are still debating about the exact purpose of the Nevyansk Tower. Some say that Demidov used it as a "bank safe", others believe it was either a watchtower, or a belltower, or a prison, or even a laboratory for conducting chemical experiments and producing counterfeit money. Some historians think that the tower was supposed to embody the might of the Demidov family and serve as some sort of an architectural symbol of their dynasty. A safe is a secure lockable box used for securing valuable objects against theft or damage. ... A watchtower is a type of fortification. ... The Belltower at University of California, Riverside, a center piece of the campus at UC Riverside. ... Biochemistry laboratory at the University of Cologne. ... A counterfeit is an imitation that is made with the intent to deceptively represent its content or origins. ...

During the restoration works in the tower, archaeologists were able to determine the purpose of some of the rooms. It appears that the first floor of the tower was used for conducting some sort of "secret work" with the help of shackled serfs. According to discovered documents, the second floor may have been Demidov’s "office", where he kept his archives and other papers. The third floor housed a kind of laboratory, equipped with a furnace. A soot sample taken from the flue showed traces of silver and gold in it, but scientists say that the story about Demidov minting coins is probably a myth. Most likely, the tower was used for smelting the top layers of ore-bearing deposits, which often contain silver or gold. Floors four to six have stairwells only. The seventh and the eight floors house a unique clock with bell music made by an English master Richard Phelps. The story has it that Demidov bought the clock for 5,000 rubles, which was an astronomical amount for that time (for comparison, the construction of the Nevyansk Tower itself cost 4,207 rubles). The clock has three dials, ten music bells weighing about 4 tons, and one alarm bell. The last ninth floor was probably used as an observation post. Costumes of Slaves or Serfs, from the Sixth to the Twelfth Centuries, collected by H. de Vielcastel, from original Documents in the great Libraries of Europe. ... Biochemistry laboratory at the University of Cologne. ... A furnace is a device for heating air or any other fluid. ... Soot, also called lampblack or carbon black, is a dark powdery deposit of unburned fuel residues, usually composed mainly of amorphous carbon, that accumulates in chimneys, automobile mufflers and other surfaces exposed to smoke—especially from the combustion of carbon-rich organic fuels in the lack of sufficient oxygen. ... General Name, Symbol, Number silver, Ag, 47 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 5, d Appearance lustrous white metal Atomic mass 107. ... General Name, Symbol, Number gold, Au, 79 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 6, d Appearance metallic yellow Atomic mass 196. ... An ore is a mineral deposit containing a metal or other valuable resource in economically viable concentrations. ... A clock (from the Latin cloca, bell) is an instrument for measuring time. ... Bell may refer to: Bell (instrument), a simple sound-making device Bell System, the name of Americas telephone system from the 1880s until around 1984 Wind instrument, the bell is the round, flared opening at the opposite end from the mouthpiece, where the sound exits and is amplified... Royal motto: Dieu et mon droit (French: God and my right) Englands location within the UK Official language English de facto Capital London de facto Largest city London Area  - Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population  - Total (2001)  - Density Ranked 1st UK 49,138,831 377/km² Ethnicity... 1997 Russian Federation one rouble coin. ... The word ton or tonne is derived from the Old English tunne, and ultimately from the Old French tonne, and referred originally to a large cask with a capacity of 252 wine gallons, which holds approximately 2100 pounds of water. ...

There is one mysterious room in the tower, the purpose of which is still being debated. Archaeologists dubbed it the "acoustic room". It is a 20 m² room, located between the fourth and the fifth floors. If a person stands in one corner of this room, he or she can whisper words to another person in the opposite corner and they will be perfectly audible. Scientists still do not know whether the room was built like this on purpose or not. It could be that Demidov used this acoustic room for gathering "intelligence" on his high-ranking guests.

The purpose of inclination

One of the legends has it that the inclination of the tower was an idea of some talented architect. They say that the tower was purposely inclined to face southwest in the direction of Tula, Demidov’s birthplace. Supposedly, this is how Akinfiy wanted to demonstrate his affection for his former home. Another legend claims that right after the end of the construction of the edifice Akinfiy Demidov and the architect went on top of the tower. There, Demidov asked him whether he could build anything better than the Nevyansk Tower. The architect said "yes", and Demidov ordered to throw him down from the top of the building. The next morning the locals supposedly noticed that the tower had leaned forward a bit and streamlets of water had started trickling down the walls as if the tower was "crying". Interestingly enough, one can still see some water constantly dripping down the southwest wall of the tower to this day. However, the scientists say there are a lot of materialistic explanations to this phenomenon. Places named Tula include: Tula, Russia Tula, in the state of Hidalgo, Mexico Tula is also the professional name of model-cum-actress Caroline Cossey. ...

The restorers say that there is no evidence to even assume that the Nevyansk Tower was purposely built inclined. The current surveying data shows that the defect had to be obvious during the construction. It appears that drifting grounds were to blame for the inclination of the tower from the very beginning. Scientists believe that an uneven subsidence took place when the tower had already been partially built. Most likely, the construction workers stopped building the tower on seeing the defect, but later on they decided to go on with their work. This can be proven by the color of mortar between the bricks, the composition of which changed as the architects worked their way up. It is also visible how the workers started using specially trimmed bricks, with which they tried to even out the tower. It appears that the architects finally succeeded in straightening it out. Current measurements indicate that there is a 3-degree deviation of the base part from the axis, the middle part is already straightened, and the inclination of the tower equals 1 degree only. The top part of the tower is standing vertically. Local meteorologists say that one can make sure that the top of the tower is absolutely vertical without even using a theodolite by looking at the weather vane on the steeple. It shows the direction of the wind even when the wind is minimal. If the top of the tower were not vertical, the two-meter weather vane weighing 25 kg would always stand still in calm weather in the same position. And this never happens. Surveyor at work Surveying is the art and science of accurately determining the position of points and the distances between them. ... A road destroyed by subsidence and shear. ... Mortar holding bricks. ... A weathered brick wall. ... A degree (or in full a degree of arc), usually symbolized °, is a measurement of plane angle, representing 1/360 of a full rotation. ... Meteorology is the scientific study of the atmosphere that focuses on weather processes and forecasting. ... Diagram of an Optical Theodolite. ... Weather vane Weather cock A weather vane, also called a wind vane, is a movable device attached to an elevated object such as a roof for showing the direction of the wind. ... Steeple is a the name of a number of settlements: In the United Kingdom Steeple, Cumbria Steeple, Dorset Steeple, Essex Steeple is also an architectural term. ... Wind is the quasi-horizontal movement of air (as opposed to an air current) caused by a horizontal pressure gradient force. ... KG, Kg or kg may indicate: A Kampfgeschwader, a bomber squadron of the former German Luftwaffe Basketball Player Kevin Garnett An abbreviation for kilogram (always kg) Knight of the Garter, a British decoration Kommanditgesellschaft, German version of a limited partnership Kongo language (ISO 639 alpha-2) An abbreviation for konig...

18th century hi-tech

After having studied the tower, the scientists found out that its architects had utilized some of the most advanced technologies available at that time. The roof of the tower is crowned with a metallic lightning rod in the shape of a gilded sphere with spikes. If the Nevyansk Tower were built somewhere between 1725 and 1732, it means that the Russian masters created the first lightning rod some 25 years before Benjamin Franklin. Also, the archaeologists found out that in order to fasten the structural parts of the tower the workers had used the principle of reinforced concrete for the first time in the world, or some 130 years before its "official" discovery. The Nevyansk Tower is literally pierced with deeply grounded metal bars. Another astonishing thing about the tower is that the metal parts used during the construction do not have a slightest trace of corrosion. Scientists say that these parts have 99,6% of iron in them. It is not at all hard to produce such material today, but how they did it in the 18th century is still not certain. Nikola Teslas Lightning-Protector U.S. Patent 1266175 A lightning rod is a metal strip or rod, usually of copper or similar conductive material, used to protect tall or isolated structures (such as the roof of a building or the mast of a vessel) from lightning damage. ... A guild is an association of persons of the same trade or pursuits, formed to protect mutual interests and maintain standards of morality or conduct. ... A sphere is, roughly speaking, a ball-shaped object. ... Benjamin Franklin by Jean-Baptiste Greuze 1777 For the former mayor of Nepean, see Ben Franklin (politician) Dr. Benjamin Franklin (January 17, 1706 – April 17, 1790) was an American printer, journalist, publisher, author, philanthropist, abolitionist, public servant, scientist, librarian, diplomat,Atheist and inventor. ... Reinforced concrete at Sainte Jeanne dArc Church (Nice, France): architect Jacques Dror, 1926 - 1933 Reinforced concrete (Ferro concrete) is plain concrete in which steel reinforcement rods or bars (rebars) have been incorporated to strengthen the naturally brittle concrete. ... Ground symbols The term ground (or earth) usually means a common return path in electrical circuits. ... Corrosion Corrosion is deterioration of useful properties in a material due to reactions with its environment. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Atomic mass 55. ...

After the restoration, the Nevyansk Tower was open to public. Guided tours are provided by a local museum. A museum is typically a non-profit, permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits, for purposes of study, education enjoyment, the tangible and intangible evidence of people and their environment. ...

Sources

• Most of the article was translated from the original Russian text in the Itogi Weekly Magazine [1]

• Additional material was translated from the Russian text at http://7.ural.ru [2]