Cairo Tower
| Cairo Tower | |
|---|---|
برج القاهرة | |
Cairo tower in 2012 | |
| General information | |
| Status | Completed |
| Type | Communications, observation, restaurants, visitor attraction |
| Architectural style | Ancient Egypt |
| Location | Cairo, Egypt |
| Coordinates | 30°02′45″N 31°13′28″E / 30.04583°N 31.22444°E |
| Construction started | 1956 |
| Completed | 1961 |
| Opening | 1961 |
| Cost | Around $US1-3 million |
| Owner | Government of Egypt |
| Height | |
| Architectural | 187 m (613.5 ft) |
| Antenna spire | 187 m (613.5 ft) |
| Roof | 160 m (524.9 ft) |
| Top floor | 143 m (469.2 ft) |
| Observatory | 143 m (469.2 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Material | Concrete |
| Floor count | 16 |
| Lifts/elevators | 3 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Naoum Shebib |
| Website | |
| cairotower.net (requires Adobe Flash; in English) | |
| References | |
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The Cairo Tower (Arabic: برج القاهرة, Borg El-Qāhira) is a free-standing concrete tower in Cairo, Egypt. At 187 m (614 ft), it was the tallest structure in Egypt for 37 years until 1998, when it was surpassed by the Suez Canal overhead powerline crossing. It was the tallest structure in North Africa for 21 years until 1982, when it was surpassed by the Nador transmitter in Morocco. It was the tallest structure in Africa for one year until 1962, when it was surpassed by Sentech Tower in South Africa.
One of Cairo's well-known modern monuments, sometimes considered Egypt's second most famous landmark after the Pyramids of Giza, it stands in the Gezira district on Gezira Island in the River Nile, close to downtown Cairo.