Beacon of Japan’s Future, Sparkling With Nostalgia
TOKYO — It was erected in a city still scarred by war, on the grounds of an ancient Buddhist temple, using steel from scrapped American battle tanks. But when finished in 1958, Tokyo Tower gripped Japan’s imagination by pointing the way to a brighter future.
Visitors pressed into packed elevators to see the view from an observation deck this month.
The 1,093-foot Tokyo Tower.
The view from an observation deck this month.
The 1,093-foot structure, which resembles the Eiffel Tower but with orange and white stripes, was the world’s tallest self-supported steel structure, a title it still holds. That, and the fact it was used to broadcast color television, then in its infancy, made the tower an instant symbol of the nation’s peacetime ambitions to excel in technology.
While it never gained the global recognition of its Parisian twin or the Statue of Liberty,
he tower remains a landmark in this now affluent, sprawling city.
clipped from: www.nytimes.com 
