THE LEANING TOWER of Pisa has been given the thumbs-up by an Italian official who says the landmark is showing no further signs of leaning.

The Italian news agency ANSA reported that the chief of the office of public works, Francesco Karrer, said the condition of the tower was now “excellent”. The 12th century tower in the Italian town of Pisa had gradually leaned to one side over time as a result of ground subsistence. A campaign was launched in the 1990s to prevent it from falling over altogether – a massive engineering project involving steel girdles and weights straightened it by 40cm.

However, ongoing work appears to have stabilised any further move from the 4.5m lean it already has over to one side. Karrer gave his verdict after checking a complicated system of sensors installed on the tower to monitor any slight movement.

The latest eight-year-long conservation project on the Leaning Tower of Pisa ended in mid-December last year when it was cleaned and restored to its former, gleaming white, glory. The BBC had a wonderful slideshow of pictures of the restoration here. Visitors were allowed to climb to the top of the tower since it reopened to the public in 2001.

It still leans – but perhaps not as much as it did in this tourist snap from 1954:

Pic: EMPICS Archive via PA Photos