Gustave Eiffel planned a private space for himself in one of the most famous monuments in the world. Let’s step inside it…
The beautiful ornate Eiffel Tower is the symbol of the city of lights. And what’s more is that annually, nearly ten million people visit it! But what many of us do not even realize is that, in this unlikely place, two private accommodations have been built over the years! And today we are finding out all about the Eiffel Tower apartment you never knew about until just now… Make sure to schedule your visit just in time for Maison et Objet 2018!
SEE ALSO: MAISON ET OBJET 2018: 10 REASONS WHY WE CANNOT WAIT FOR IT!
More than wanting to visit this icon of Parisian art and architecture and being able to observe the beautiful panoramic view of the city, tourists are attracted by the possibility of experiencing part of French interior design and history.
The Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower was designed by the engineer Gustave Eiffel in the 1880s, and its inauguration marked the first World Exposition and the centenary of the French Revolution. In total, there are three hundred and twenty-four meters in height of a structure made of industrial steel. It served as the basis for important studies on wind and iron resistance. It was designed to be a temporary building, but eventually, Parisians started to grow a liking and it was kept until our days.
Gustave Eiffel’s Apartment
Since 2015, tourists visiting the French capital have more space to enjoy within the Eiffel Tower. One of the narrower access areas, at the top of the penthouse, hides a fascinating secret from Gustave Eiffel. The Eiffel Tower apartment is very small and simple by the standards of its time, but that was considered one of the most coveted and valuable properties of the city.
Gustave received numerous proposals for rent and purchase of his flat, but he refused them all. Only dearest friends had the privilege of being invited to visit the place and enjoy their company. Thomas Edson, for example, was one of them. In 1899, the businessman was at Eiffel’s apartment and even presented him with a phonograph.
The Eiffel Tower apartment is located on the third level of the Tower. It has the modern metallic lattice structure exposed inside. But, in contrast to this, it presents a totally different decoration, romantic, classic, intimate and comfortable, typical of life in the nineteenth century. Almost everything has remained unchanged since the construction. That is why tourists have the chance today to understand how these dependencies were used.
Inside the apartment, there are areas for reflection, entertainment, and a laboratory, with experimentation equipment. The different environments are richly decorated with brightly colored wallpapers, wood paneling, and oil paintings. Among the pieces of furniture, there are tables, cabinets, and shelves in wood, circular armchairs and other upholstered in velvet.
The Eiffel Tower Apartment
All people on this planet have certainly had some kind of impossible dream. What if there was a way to make them one? For the Home Away company, of real estate rents, gave a unique opportunity to four winners of an international competition: to spend a night in the Eiffel Tower apartment. This occurred during the period of the French edition of the Eurocopa – the European Football Championship.
Inside the Tower, fifty-seven meters from the ground and just below the flat of Gustave Eiffel, there is a space where before it was customary to hold events. In it, a luxurious temporary apartment, with six hundred and ten square meters, was built. The author of the project was the French designer Benoit Leleu. After architectural planning, everything was built in just forty-eight hours. The result was very interesting.
Over one hundred and fifty thousand people have signed up for the contest. They all dreamed of having a rare panoramic view of Paris. The chosen ones also could appreciate the classic, warm and contemporary environments idealized by Benoit. Inside the apartment was a living and dining room, with a hundred and forty-inch television, a kitchen, a bathroom, a double bedroom and a single bedroom with three beds. All the decor followed the clean style.
WAIT! THERE IS MORE: CITY GUIDE FOR DESIGNERS: TOP 8 INTERIOR DESIGN STORES IN PARIS
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