Explore the history, view from the Eiffel Tower with Google’s new collection

Okay, so it’s not the tallest building in the world (anymore), but the iconic Eiffel Tower is a major tourist destination which is visited by millions each year. If you haven’t had the opportunity to climb its steps, Google’s made it a bit easier to admire the view from 300 metres up and learn about the story behind the Tower with its latest historical collection.

Google’s Cultural Institute teamed up with the Eiffel Tower Operating Company to put together an interactive collection featuring Street View panoramas and archive material ranging from art, plans and photos to the voice of inventor Gustave Eiffel himself (recorded by none other than Thomas Edison).

Telling the story of the Tower from its origin back in 1884 to the streams of first visitors and present day success, the collection allows you to navigate through YouTube videos and historical documents just by scrolling your mouse wheel. The Google team also took their Street View trolley to all three levels of the Tower, so you can see what it the construction and Parisian cityscape looks like from any angle.

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The collection is broken down into three exhibits, which centre on the birth of the Eiffel Tower from 1884-1887, the construction period from 1887-1889 and the Tower’s inauguration in May that year. It’s part of a series of collections by Google which are designed to catalogue and preserve hundreds of documents, museums and historical sites in partnership with museums and cultural organisations. Its previous collections include the the British Museum, the Acropolis Museum in Greece and the Anne Frank House.