You Could Own a Piece of the Eiffel Tower

An original piece of the Eiffel Tower is about to hit the auction block. A segment of the landmark's original spiral staircase, which led from the second level to the tower's summit until elevators were installed in 1983, is set to be sold by auction house Artcurial in May, per the New York Times. The complete staircase was split into 24 sections. Four went to museums, the rest were auctioned that same year; this particular section, comprising 14 steps reaching 9 feet tall and more than five feet across, was the first to be offered at that time. It is dubbed "section No. 1," per CNN.

Currently owned by an unnamed French businessman, this piece of history, constructed from steel and sheet metal, has spent the last 40 years in storage and was recently restored by the same artisans who maintain the iconic landmark. Artcurial pegs its value at $146,000 to $176,000, though it wouldn't be surprised if the final bid is much higher. A Chinese collector paid more than $600,000 for section 13 of the staircase in 2016, per CNN. Other fragments now reside everywhere from Paris' Musée d'Orsay to the grounds near the Statue of Liberty in New York. The auction house expects interest from collectors, institutions, and companies worldwide when bidding starts May 21 in Paris.