13 photos of famous landmarks under construction

Construction began in 1806 on one of the most famous landmarks in Paris, the Arc de Triomphe, to glorify Napoleon’s grand army. Progress was halted in 1815 at the fall of the Empire but began again nearly a decade later. Construction was often put on hold as revolutions and uprisings began and ended in 19th-century France, but the building was officially consecrated on December 15, 1840, when Napoleon’s hearse passed underneath the arch on the way to his final resting place. The monument has undergone construction many times through the years and this particular photo was taken in July 1919 as the statue for French soldiers lost in World War I was constructed in the hollow of the famous archway.