Big Ben Tower, London

The name Big Ben is often used to describe the tower, the clock and the bell but the name was first given to the Great Bell.The Elizabeth Tower, which stands at the north end of the Houses of Parliament, was completed in 1859 and the Great Clock started on 31 May, with the Great Bell's strikes heard for the first time on 11 July and the quarter bells first chimed on 7 September.

Images of Big Ben Tower

CN Tower, Toronto, Canada

The CN Tower is a communications and observation tower in Downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its height is 553.33 metres. It was completed in 1976, becoming the world's tallest free-standing structure and world's tallest tower at the time. It held both records for 34 years until the completion of Burj Khalifa and Canton Tower in 2010 and Tokyo Skytree in 2012. It attracts more than two million international visitors annually. In 1995, the CN Tower was declared one of the modern Seven Wonders of the World by the American Society of Civil Engineers. It also belongs to the World Federation of Great Towers, where it holds second-place ranking.

Image of  CN Tower, Toronto, Canada

   Lightning on CN Tower, Toronto, Canada

 Image of  CN Tower, Toronto, Canada

 Image of  CN Tower, Toronto, Canada

 Image of  CN Tower, Toronto, Canada

 Image of  CN Tower, Toronto, Canada

Taipei 101

Taipei 101 formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center is a skyscraper located in Xinyi District, Taipei, Taiwan. Taipei 101 comprises 101 floors above ground and 5 floors underground. The building was architecturally created as a symbol of the evolution of technology and Asian tradition. Its postmodernist approach to style incorporates traditional design elements and gives them modern treatments.The building ranked officially as the world's tallest from 2004 until the opening of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai in 2010. The tower has served as an icon of modern Taiwan ever since its opening, and received the 2004 Emporis Skyscraper Award. The tower is designed to withstand typhoons and earthquakes. A multi-level shopping mall adjoining the tower houses hundreds of fashionable stores, restaurants and clubs.

Images of Taipei 101

Tokyo Sky Tree

The Tokyo Sky Tree, formerly known as New Tokyo Tower, is a broadcasting, restaurant and observation tower under construction in Sumida, Tokyo, Japan. It has been the tallest artificial structure in Japan since 2010. The tower reached its full height of 634.0 metres (2,080 ft) in March 2011 but will not be finished until at least February 2012. One of Tokyo Sky Tree's main purposes is as a television and radio broadcasting tower. Tokyo's current broadcasting tower, Tokyo Tower, is at 333 m (1,093 ft), and is no longer tall enough to give complete digital terrestrial television broadcasting coverage because it is surrounded by many high-rise buildings. The Tokyo Sky Tree is currently the tallest tower in the world. It is taller than Canton Tower, the tallest structure on an island, taller than Taipei 101; and the second tallest structure in the world, after the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.

Images of Tokyo Sky Tree

Abraj Al-Bait Towers, Mecca, Saudi Arabia

The Abraj Al-Bait Towers also known as the Mecca Royal Hotel Clock Tower is a complex topped out in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. The building holds and will break several world records in the construction world, including: the tallest hotel in the world, constructed with the tallest clock tower in the world and displaying the world's largest clock face, the world's largest building floor area, and will become the second tallest building in the world upon completion, surpassed only by Dubai's Burj Khalifa upon its opening in 2012. The building complex is meters away from the world's largest mosque and Islam's most sacred site, the Masjid al Haram. The developer and contractor of the complex is the Saudi Binladin Group, the Kingdom's largest construction company.

An aerial view of Abraj Al-Bait Towers

Image of Abraj Al-Bait Towers

Image of under construction Abraj Al-Bait Towers

An aerial view of Abraj Al-Bait Towers

An aerial view of Abraj Al-Bait Towers

Image of Abraj Al-Bait Towers

Canton Tower, China

Canton Tower is an observation tower in the Haizhu District of Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. It was formerly called Guangzhou TV and Sightseeing Tower. Construction of the tower was started in November, 2005 and was completed on August 2009 and it became operational on 29 September 2010 for the 2010 Asian Games. The height of antenna spire is 600 m. It is used for restaurant, observation and telecommunications. The tower briefly held the title of tallest completed tower in the world.

Image of under construction Canton Tower, China

Image of Canton Tower, China

Image of Canton Tower, China

Colourful view of Canton Tower, China at night

Colourful view of Canton Tower, China at night

Petronas Twin Towers

The Petronas Twin Towers are skyscrapers and twin towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. They were the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 until surpassed by Taipei 101 Taipei, Taiwan. But it remains the tallest twin buildings in the world. The building is the landmark of Kuala Lumpur with nearby Kuala Lumpur Tower.

Eiffel Tower, France

The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. It was built in 1889, has become one of the most recognizable structures in the world. The tower is the tallest (324 metres) building in Paris and has become the most prominent symbol of both Paris and France.It was named after its designer, engineer Gustave Eiffel.

The tower has three levels for visitors. Tickets can be purchased to ascend, by stairs or lift, to the first and second levels. The walk from ground level to the first level is over 300 steps, as is the walk from the first to the second level. The third and highest level is accessible only by elevator. Both the first and second levels feature restaurants.

The tower is most-visited paid monument in the world; millions of people ascend it every year.

Images of Eiffel Tower

Images of Eiffel Tower

Images of Eiffel Tower

Images of Eiffel Tower

Images of Eiffel Tower at night

Definition of Tower

A tower is a tall narrow structure, usually taller than it is wide, often by a significant margin.

Towers are generally built to take advantage of their height, and can stand alone on the ground, or as part of a larger structure or device such as a fortified building or as an integral part of a bridge, the term also denoting a raised structure on a ship or other vehicle.