Qualla: The Leaning Tower of Pisa: The Building That's Been Falling for 850 Years https://qualla.com/leaning-tower-pisa en-us © 2026 Bendyline Mon, 20 Jul 2026 10:21:06 GMT Qualla serial false Qualla support@bendyline.com yes https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/z/2/leaning-tower-pisa-wk/hero-small.webp Qualla: The Leaning Tower of Pisa: The Building That's Been Falling for 850 Years https://qualla.com/leaning-tower-pisa The Leaning Tower of Pisa: The Building That's Been Falling for 850 Years: Introduction https://qualla.com/leaning-tower-pisa/ Photo credit Saffron Blaze, CC BY-SA 3.0. The Leaning Tower of Pisa was a mistake. When construction began in 1173, no one planned for a 4-degree tilt. The soft ground on one side began settling before the third floor was complete. Construction stopped for a century. When it resumed, builders tried to compensate by making one side taller - creating a slight banana curve. The tower has been slowly falling ever since. In 1990, it was closed and 70 tons of lead were placed on one side to prevent collapse. Today, after centuries of engineering interventions, the tower still leans 4 degrees - and will forever, because straightening it would destroy its fame.

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Image: Saffron Blaze | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Thu, 15 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/z/2/leaning-tower-pisa-wk/spz2-the-leaning-tower-of-pisa-the-building-thats-been--intro.mp3 0:06 1 full The Leaning Tower of Pisa: The Building That's Been Falling for 850 Years: The Mistake https://qualla.com/leaning-tower-pisa/ Photo credit Joanbanjo, CC BY-SA 3.0. Construction began in 1173, intended as the bell tower (campanile) for Pisa's cathedral. The foundation was only three meters deep - grossly inadequate for the soft alluvial soil. By the time the third floor was complete around 1178, the south side was sinking. Construction stop...

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Image: Joanbanjo | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Thu, 15 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/z/2/leaning-tower-pisa-wk/spz2-the-leaning-tower-of-pisa-the-building-thats-been--the-mistake.mp3 0:06 2 full The Leaning Tower of Pisa: The Building That's Been Falling for 850 Years: The Lean https://qualla.com/leaning-tower-pisa/ Photo credit Sailko, CC BY-SA 4.0. The tower continued to tilt throughout construction, which wasn't completed until 1372 - 199 years after it began. By then, the lean was substantial but stable. The tower stood 186 feet tall, with eight stories of marble arcades, topped by a bell chamber. Over centuries, the lea...

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Image: Sailko | CC BY-SA 4.0

]]> Thu, 15 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/z/2/leaning-tower-pisa-wk/spz2-the-leaning-tower-of-pisa-the-building-thats-been--the-lean.mp3 0:06 3 full The Leaning Tower of Pisa: The Building That's Been Falling for 850 Years: The Rescue https://qualla.com/leaning-tower-pisa/ Photo credit Sailko, CC BY 2.5. In 1990, the tower was closed to visitors for the first time since 1944. Engineers attached 600 tons of lead weights to the north side. Steel cables were wrapped around the third floor. The lean stabilized but the tower was still in danger. The solution was elegant: soil extract...

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Image: Sailko | CC BY 2.5

]]> Thu, 15 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/z/2/leaning-tower-pisa-wk/spz2-the-leaning-tower-of-pisa-the-building-thats-been--the-rescue.mp3 0:06 4 full The Leaning Tower of Pisa: The Building That's Been Falling for 850 Years: The Science https://qualla.com/leaning-tower-pisa/ Photo credit Nuada, Public domain. Galileo Galilei, Pisa's most famous son, reportedly dropped balls of different weights from the tower to demonstrate that objects fall at the same rate regardless of mass. This experiment may be apocryphal - Galileo never mentioned it - but it captures the tower's place in scient...

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Image: Nuada | Public domain

]]> Thu, 15 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/z/2/leaning-tower-pisa-wk/spz2-the-leaning-tower-of-pisa-the-building-thats-been--the-science.mp3 0:06 5 full The Leaning Tower of Pisa: The Building That's Been Falling for 850 Years: The Fame https://qualla.com/leaning-tower-pisa/ Photo credit Lonewolf1976 (talk) Original uploader was Lonewolf1976 at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0. The Leaning Tower draws 5 million visitors annually. Tourists pose pretending to hold it up or push it over. The surrounding Field of Miracles - cathedral, baptistery, and cemetery - is often ignored. The lean made a mediocre bell tower world-famous. Engineers could straighten t...

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Image: Lonewolf1976 (talk) Original uploader was Lonewolf1976 at en.wikipedia | CC BY-SA 3.0

]]> Thu, 15 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://qualla.com/_m/s/p/z/2/leaning-tower-pisa-wk/spz2-the-leaning-tower-of-pisa-the-building-thats-been--the-fame.mp3 0:06 6 full