Thank goodness for elevators, if we didn’t have them it would be a lot harder to lease the top floor of an office building. And forget about the hotel Penthouse Suites… they would be rented out at a discount instead of a premium. Here is an ode to some really unique elevators:
AquaDom
Berlin, Germany
The AquaDom, a unique elevator in Berlin, Germany, is an 82 foot tall cylinder chock full of fish and marine specimens. The elevator shaft has 260,000 gallons of seawater and more than 1,500 fish. It takes 3-4 divers to feed the fish and maintain the tank; can you imagine that as your job?
The Louvre
Paris, France
The Louvre has some really cool features — the iconic glass pyramid, the thousands of pieces of valuable and one-of-a-kind art pieces, and a really cool elevator; it’s more of a hydraulic lift, actually. The wall-less and ceiling-less elevator transport people from one level to another. It doesn’t go far, but it sure is unique!
Falkirk Wheel
Scotland
Not an elevator the way you would traditionally assume, but still serves the same purpose. The Falkrik Wheel transports boats from one canal to the next. The wheel works by Archimedes principle and several technicians that run the operation and make sure the wheel turns smoothly. The wheel can turn in 8 minutes and uses less energy than you would probably guess: about 5 kilowats per hour, the same amount of energy as it would take to boil 8 tea kettles!
Paternoster Elevators
Popular in Europe and Scandinavia
This unique type of elevator is built for efficiency. It is essentially a rotating series of elevators that you can hop on and off as needed. Generally speaking each elevator fits 1-2 people and travels rather slowly (to give people time to jump on and off as needed). They were common in Europe and Scandinavia in the early 20th century. Due to heightened safety concerns, they aren’t built often anymore and even illegal in some countries.
Bike Elevator
Trondheim, Norway
The first and ONLY bike “elevator” in the world. It was opened in 1993 as part of a Public Works project in Trondheim, Norway. The idea of the bike elevator was to encourage more bikers in the city. You push a “start” button and a little peg pops up and you rest one foot on the peg and allow the moving belt to move you and your bike up the hill at 5 mph.
Former Macy’s Warehouse
New York City, New York
Thanks to Scouting New York for this wonderful find. Behind a very unassuming elevator door, lies a very unique elevator designed to be a fantastical monster. An artistic expression in an ex-Macy’s warehouse in Queens, New York.
Hammetschwand Lift
Switzerland
Behold, the Hammetschwand Lift, Europe’s tallest and one of the fastest exterior elevators. The elevator lets out on the top of a rock ledge and gives breathtaking views of Lake Lucerne and the Alps.