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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, May 23, 2003

Chinese 'Leaning Tower' to Reopen to Public

China's first "Leaning Tower", the Huqiu Tower, will open to tourists within months after 17 years of examination and protection, according to sources with the bureau of cultural relics of Suzhou city of east China's Jiangsu Province.


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China's first "Leaning Tower", the Huqiu Tower, will open to tourists within months after 17 years of examination and protection, according to sources with the bureau of cultural relics of Suzhou city of east China's Jiangsu Province.

Built in 959 AD, Huqiu Tower is located on a 34-meter-high hill with a height of 47.7 meters. It is the most ancient building in Suzhou and is regarded as the city symbol.

The tower began to lean in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), with apresent inclination of three degrees and 59 minutes. It became a national reserve in 1961 and was closed in 1975.

Since 1981, over one million yuan (about 120,000 US dollars) has been spent on the maintenance and examination of the leaning tower. Experts at home and abroad recently proved that the bottom floor of the tower could be open to the public again.

Several copies of the relics which were unearthed in the tower will be shown in a exhibition hall on the bottom floor when it is reopened, said the sources.


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