Juche Tower


The Juche Tower is a monument in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, named after the ideology of Juche introduced by the country's first leader, Kim Il-sung.

Background

The Juche Tower is situated on the east bank of the River Taedong, directly opposite Kim Il-sung Square on the west bank. It was built to commemorate Kim Il-sung's 70th birthday. Although his son and successor Kim Jong-il is officially credited as its designer, interviews with former North Korean officials contradict this assertion.
The architectural style of the Tower is inspired by stone pagodas of premodern Korea. The structure is a four-sided tapering spirethe tallest in granitecontaining 25,550 blocks, dressed in white stone with seventy dividers and capped with a -high 45-ton illuminated metal torch.
The torch on top of the tower is always lit. It is possible to ascend the tower by elevator and there are wide views over Pyongyang from the viewing platform just below the torch.
At its base, there are reception rooms where videos explaining the tower's ideological importance are sometimes shown. It is presumed to be modelled on the Washington Monument, which it surpasses in height by less than a meter. The Juche Tower is the second tallest monumental column in the world after the San Jacinto Monument, which is taller.
Associated with the tower is a -high statue consisting of three idealised figures each holding a toola hammer ; a sickle ; and a writing brush in a classic Stalinistic-style reminiscent of the Soviet statue Worker and Kolkhoz Woman. The three tools form the insignia on the flag of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea. There are also six smaller groups of figures, each high, that symbolize other aspects of Juche ideology.
A wall carrying 82 friendship plaques from foreign supporters and Juche study groups forms part of the Tower.

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