Description of the attraction
The water tower in Chisinau is a monument of industrial architecture of the 19th century and one of the most recognizable landmarks of the city.
With the construction of a water tower in 1892, the creation of a city water supply began. The author of the project was the famous Russian architect with Italian roots - Alexander Bernardazzi. It is noteworthy that it was he who was the first chief architect of Chisinau and the author of many projects, according to which the best buildings in the city were erected.
The height of the Water Tower is 22 meters. Its top floor, originally built of wood, was destroyed by an earthquake and only rebuilt in 1983. The load-bearing walls of the tower are built of local shell rock, in some places you can find brickwork. The thickness of the walls at the base reaches 2 meters, gradually decreasing to 0.6 meters on the upper floor. Inside the building, there is still an old metal spiral staircase, along which it was possible to go upstairs (today an elevator is used for this purpose).
For some time, the building of the water tower was used for the needs of the Historical Museum, and in 1971 the tower itself was turned into a museum exhibit. Today, there is an exhibition dedicated to the history of the construction of the tower. More permanent exhibitions are planned. The windows of the upper floors offer a magnificent view of the whole Chisinau.
In 2011, eight powerful floodlights were installed around the tower, which change the color of the beams every 10 seconds. Such illumination literally "breathed new life" into the old building, making it one of the most striking sights of the city.
