Claire Bechet

Eiffel Tower Night Claire Bechet

The Eiffel Tower might not have been called the Eiffel Tower but the Bonickhausen Tower because its creator, Gustave Eiffel, was born Gustave Bonickhausen. It might not have been erected in Paris, since a first project had first been proposed to the city of Barcelona, which refused it, finding it both impractical and too expensive. Finally, the Eiffel Tower might not have existed at all. Although the project of Gustave Eiffel won the competition launched for the 1889 Universal Exhibition, which was to celebrate the centenary of the French Revolution, the prospect of seeing a tower rising over three hundred meters high on the Champ de Mars unleashed fears and criticism. Claire Béchet's informative and entertaining essay evoking the quintessential symbol of modern France is complemented by Ronald W. Kenyon's astonishing photographs taken in directly below the Eiffel Tower. EIFFEL TOWER NIGHT will offer surprises and delights to both Parisians and visitors and will become a treasured and unique souvenir of the Lady of Iron.