The Milad Tower (, ) (lit. Birth Tower), also known as the Tehran Tower ( ), is a multi-purpose tower in

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

, Iran. It is the sixth-tallest tower and the world's first telecommunication tower in terms of the usage area of the top structure and the tallest tower in Iran and the 24th-tallest freestanding structure in the world. The construction of the tower took about 11 years and 7 months. It is located between

Shahrak-e Gharb Shahrak-e Gharb or Gharb Town (, "West Town"), officially Qods Town (, "Quds (Jerusalem) Town"), is a planned town built as a massive project of modern, luxury apartment buildings and villas in the north-western part of Tehran, Iran. History O ...

and the district of

Gisha Gisha or Guisha (, also called Kuy-e Nasr, ), originally Kisha (from the names of its two founders, "Keynejad" and "Shapourian"), is a neighborhood in Tehran, Iran. The neighborhood was known as a center for youth recreation, shopping, and dating. ...

, standing at 435 meters from the base to the tip of the antenna. The head consists of a large pod with 12 floors, the roof of which is at 315 meters. The tower is a part of the International Trade and Convention Center of Tehran, which also includes a five-star hotel, a convention center, a world trade center and an IT park.

History

Background

The Milad Tower was part of the Shahestan Pahlavi project, a vast development for a new government and commercial centre for Tehran, that was designed in the 1970s but never materialised, except for the tower. After an international competition, the project was awarded to the Llewelyn Davies Company and construction was inaugurated on 19 August 1975, with Shah

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (26 October 1919 – 27 July 1980) was the last List of monarchs of Iran, Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 to 1979. He succeeded his father Reza Shah and ruled the Imperial State of Iran until he was overthrown by the ...

and Mayor of Tehran,

Gholamreza Nikpey Gholam-Reza Nikpey (غلامرضا نیک‌پی), also Nikpay (1927 – 11 April 1979) was deputy prime minister of Iran and Mayor of Tehran. He became List of mayors of Tehran, Mayor of Tehran in 1969, succeeding Javad Shahrestani. Prior to th ...

burying a commemorative gold plaque. There is also another background of building this tower, since the construction of the tower was started after the

1979 revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Impe ...

. The new government of Iran wanted to create a new symbol for

to replace the

Azadi Tower The Azadi Tower (, ; "Freedom Tower"), formerly known as the Shahyad Tower (, ; "Shah's Memorial Tower"), is a monument on Azadi Square in Tehran, Iran. It is one of the landmarks of Tehran, marking the west entrance to the city, and is part of ...

that was a symbol of the

Pahlavi era The Imperial State of Iran, officially known as the Imperial State of Persia until 1935, and commonly referred to as Pahlavi Iran, was the Iranian state under the rule of the Pahlavi dynasty. The Pahlavi dynasty was created in 1925 and lasted ...

Construction

The construction of the tower was commenced in 1997. In 2001, at the suggestion of the Islamic Council of Tehran, on the occasion of the 100th birthday of

Ruhollah Khomeini Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini (17 May 1900 or 24 September 19023 June 1989) was an Iranian revolutionary, politician, political theorist, and religious leader. He was the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the main leader of the Iranian ...

, the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, it was renamed Milad Tower. The construction of this tower lasted for 11 years. In the first 8 years, only 40% of the tower was completed, but with the acceleration of the project by

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (, born 23 August 1961) is an Iranian Iranian Principlists, conservative politician, former military officer, and current List of Speakers of the Parliament of Iran, Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, Parli ...

, the mayor of Tehran, the next 60% was built in 30 months. Upon completion of its construction in the mid 2000s, the Milad Tower was considered the fourth-tallest freestanding telecommunication tower in the world. The tower's construction was finished in 2007, 11 years after the beginning of construction. On 7 October 2008, Milad Tower was opened with the slogan "Heaven is near" in the presence of representatives of the Islamic Council, members of the Islamic Council of Tehran and Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the mayor of Tehran. This ceremony was covered by more than 250 Iranian and foreign journalists. Numerous conflicts on the history of the tower still prevail, partly because sections of the tower were open to visitors once the elevators started operating during construction and the tower was still far from finished. The design of the project was headed by Iranian architect Mohammad Reza Hafezi. The general contractor was the company of Boland Payeh, and the main client and investor was the company of Yadman Sazeh, a representative of the Municipality of Tehran.

Structure and features

Milad Tower is tall and is the tallest tower in Iran, and the sixth-tallest telecommunication tower in the world. It consists of five main parts, including the foundation, transition (lobby) structure, shaft, head structure and the antenna mast. The lobby structure consists of six floors. The first three floors consist of 63 trade units, 11

food court A food court (in Asia-Pacific also called food hall or hawker centre) is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food Vendor, vendors and provides a common area for self-serve di ...

s, a cafeteria, and a commercial products exhibition which is supposed to be about . The first and second underground floors consist of installing sections and a data center. The ground floor is dedicated to the entrance and the gatehouse. The shaft is a

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bound together with a fluid cement that cures to a solid over time. It is the second-most-used substance (after water), the most–widely used building material, and the most-manufactur ...

structure about high from the ground floor. Six elevators in three different sides of the shaft are used to transfer the visitors to the head of the tower at the speed of , besides an emergency staircase at the fourth side. The head of the tower is a steel structure weighing about 25,000 tonnes and consisting of 12 floors. The top floors of the tower include a public art gallery, a cafeteria, a

revolving restaurant A revolving restaurant or rotating restaurant is a tower restaurant designed to rest atop a broad circular revolving wikt:platform, platform that operates as a large turntable. The building remains stationary and the diners are carried on the rev ...

, a VIP restaurant, telecommunication floors,

mechanical floor A mechanical floor, mechanical penthouse, mechanical layer or mechanical level is a story of a high-rise building that is dedicated to mechanical and electronics equipment. "Mechanical" is the most commonly used term, but words such as ''utilit ...

s, fire-immune areas built as a refuge zone, a closed observation deck, an open observation deck, and a sky dome. The four-stage antenna mast is about high. The lower floor of the mast is for the adjustment of public users' telecommunication antennas, and the three upper floors are dedicated to the antenna of the

Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB; ) or Seda va Sima () for short, formerly called National Iranian Radio and Television until the Iranian revolution of 1979, is an Iranian state-controlled media corporation that holds a monopo ...

. The complex also features a parking area of about , a large computer and telecommunications unit, a cultural and scientific unit, a commercial transaction center, a temporary showroom for exhibiting products, a specialized library, an exhibition hall, and an administrative unit. The Milad Tower has an octagonal base, a reference to traditional

Iranian architecture Iranian architecture or Persian architecture (, ''Me'māri e Irāni'') is the architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia, the Caucasus and Central Asia. Its history dates back to at least 5,000 BC with characteristic examples distr ...

Gallery

Tochal and Milad Tower from Chitgar Park.jpg, Mount Tochal and the Milad Tower Milad tower2023.jpg, View of Tehran at night from Milad Tower Milad Tower - panoramio (1).jpg, Milad Tower at night Tour Milad, nuit, Téhéran (1).jpg, Milad Tower at night Tour Milad, Téhéran (1).jpg, Milad Tower and a portrait of

Ali Khamenei Ali Hosseini Khamenei (; born 19 April 1939) is an Iranian cleric and politician who has served as the second supreme leader of Iran since 1989. He previously served as the third President of Iran, president from 1981 to 1989. Khamenei's tenure ...

Tour Milad, Téhéran (2).jpg, Milad Tower from below

Ranks

* Sixth-tallest freestanding tower in the world * 24th-tallest freestanding structure in the world

References

External links

* {{Towers in Iran Amphitheaters Articles containing video clips Buildings and structures in Tehran Buildings and structures with revolving restaurants Concert halls in Iran Islamic Republic of Iran era architecture Tourist attractions in Tehran Towers completed in 2007 Towers in Iran Towers with revolving restaurants