Eiffel Tower, Paris, France Sept 20, 2026

No other city is nearly as romanticised as Paris. Yet the French capital"s history has not always been as rosy as the sunset glowing behind the Eiffel Tower. Built for the 1889 Exposition Universelle, or the World"s Fair, which marked the centennial of the start of the French Revolution, the tower was originally intended to serve as the fair"s entrance centrepiece. Designed by engineer Gustave Eiffel and his team, the iron landmark rose more than 300 metres above the Champ de Mars and became the tallest structure in the world at the time.

© Alexander Spatari/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Teddy bears of the sea
Sep 20, 2023Aqueduct, Arkadia Park, Poland
Sep 20, 2024Ocracoke Lighthouse on Ocracoke Island, North Carolina, USA
Sep 20, 2025Oktoberfest begins!

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Oct 29, 2023Bonaventure Cemetery, Savannah, Georgia, USA
Angry bird, doting dad
Jul 2, 2026Ceiling of the Temple of Esna, Egypt
Natures boost fruit
Black sands in a tropical paradise
Jan 20, 2024Macaroni penguins
May 2, 2025Striated heron on a Victoria water lily, Pantanal, Brazil
Home of the ‘world’s worst smelling food’?
‘Night shining’ clouds
A church atop a hill
Mar 18, 2025Red Rocks, Sedona, Arizona, United States
Mar 14, 2025Lathmar Holi
Jun 4, 2024Chestnut-headed bee-eater, Bardia National Park, Nepal
Jul 27, 2025Barracudas at Shark Reef, Ras Mohammed National Park, Sinai Peninsula, Egypt
On a dark and stormy night...
Happy birthday Badlands National Park
Mar 1, 2026African elephants in Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya
Feb 21, 2026Red fox, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, United States
Mar 28, 2024Cherry blossoms in Shanghai, China
In the spotlight
Im ready for my close-up, Mr. DeSquirrel
Jul 10, 2026Aerial view of land and ocean, Victoria, Australia
May 19, 2025Mount Hamilton, San Francisco Bay Area, California, United States
May 15, 2026Endangered Species Day
Jun 11, 2024A group of Southern gemsbok in the savannah, Botswana
Jun 18, 2025Asian swallowtail butterfly on a red spider lily
An island park for everyone
Nov 2, 2025Maple and bamboo forests in Arashiyama, Kyoto, Japan
Feb 26, 2026Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, United States
What’s blooming so brightly?