Many of the world’s famous historical landmarks were built hundreds or even thousands of years ago, but in this article, you have the opportunity to see seven that were under construction during a time when photographs could be taken!

Eiffel Tower during construction

Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower is a 330m (1,083ft) tall iron tower built as the main attraction for the 1889 World’s Fair (Exposition Universelle of 1889) and also to commemorate 100 years since the beginning of the French Revolution. The project was built by Gustave Eiffel’s company with Maurice Koechlin and Emile Nouguier as chief engineers, and Stephen Sauvestre as the leading architect. 150 to 300 workers worked on assembling the tower over the 2 years, 2 months, and 5 days it took to construct.

Location: Paris, France
Construction started: January 26th, 1887
Construction completed: March 31st, 1889

Golden Gate Bridge during construction

The Golden Gate Bridge

The Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Golden Gate Strait which connects San Francisco Bay and the the Pacific Ocean. The bridge is 2.7km (1.7 miles) long, the towers are 227m (746ft) above the water, and it cost $35 million in the 1930s, equivalent to about $840 million in 2024. Construction took just over 4 years and the Golden Gate Bridge opened for use on May 27th, 1937.

Location: California, United States
Construction started: January 5th, 1933
Construction completed: April 19th, 1937

Christ the Redeemer during construction

Christ the Redeemer

Christ the Redeemer is a statue of Jesus Christ located at the top of Corcovado in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is 30m (98ft) tall and the arms span 28m (92ft) wide. The foundation was ceremonially laid on April 4th, 1922 before plans had been finalized. The project was overseen by engineer Heitor da Silva Costa who had won a competition to design the monument. He collaborated with artist Carlos Oswald, sculptor Paul Landowski, and sculptor Gheorghe Leonida to create the final design of the statue. Construction continued in 1926 until it was completed and opened on October 12th, 1931.

Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Construction started: April 4th, 1922
Construction completed: October 12th, 1931

The Statue of Liberty during construction

The Statue of Liberty

The Statue of Liberty “Liberty Enlightening the World” is a copper statue of the Roman goddess and personification of Liberty, Libertas. It was given to the United States as a gift from the people of France to commemorate the alliance between the countries during the American Revolution. The statue was designed by sculptor Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi and the internal structural elements were designed by Gustave Eiffel. The statue was completed and assembled entirely in Paris, France and a ceremony was held on July 4th, 1884 to present it to Levi P. Morton, the US Minister to France. After the ceremony, it was disassembled and shipped to the United States, arriving in New York Harbor in June 1885. Construction of the pedestal began in 1884 but was not ready upon the arrival of the statue, so it was not reassembled until 1886. The dedication ceremony was held on the afternoon of October 28th, 1886.

Location: New York, United States
Construction started: 1876
Construction completed: October 28th, 1886

Sagrada Família during construction

Sagrada Família

The Basílica de la Sagrada Família is a church in Barcelona that was designed by architect Antoni Gaudí. Construction began on March 19th, 1882 with the laying of the cornerstone by the Bishop of Barcelona, José María de Urquinaona y Vidot. As of 2024, 142 years later, construction of the Sagrada Família is still ongoing. When the chief architect Antoni Gaudí died in 1926, less than a quarter of the basilica had been completed but it is now expected to be completed in 2026, 100 years after Gaudí’s death. Once completed, the Sagrada Família will be the tallest church in the world, with the central tower standing at 170m (558ft) tall.

Location: Barcelona, Spain
Construction started: March 19th, 1882
Construction completed: Ongoing

Mount Rushmore during construction

Mount Rushmore

Mount Rushmore National Memorial is a sculpture of four US Presidents carved into Mount Rushmore in Black Hills, South Dakota. The Presidents depicted are George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln. The sculpture was designed by Gutzon Borglum and was originally intended to include the body of each figure, but due to Borglum’s death and lack of funding, construction ended in October 1941. When Gutzon Borglum died in March 1941, his son Lincoln oversaw the project but very little progress was made in the final 8 months of the project.

Location: South Dakota, United States
Construction started: October 4th, 1927
Construction completed: October 31st, 1941

Tower Bridge during construction

Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge is a bascule and suspension bridge built as a crossing across the River Thames in London, England. Designed by architects Sir Horace Jones and Sir John Wolfe Barry, it took 432 construction workers 8 years to complete the 240m (800ft) long bridge. The bridge cost around £1 million to build, which is the equivalent of about £100 million in 2024.

Location: London, United Kingdom
Construction started: April 22nd, 1886
Construction completed: June 30th, 1894