You'd Think These World Famous Landmarks Are Legit, But They're All Made-In-China Replicas
Gotta give it to the Chinese. They have created the world in China.
By Sadho Ram — 12 Mar 2017, 05:53 PM
There was a time when China was the go-to country for tourists interested in fake designer handbags and electronics (it still is), but are you aware the country has been creating life-size replicas of some of the world's most famous monuments including whole towns for years now?
YEP!
China is home to fake versions, or as journalist Bianca Bosker calls them, original copies, of London's Tower Bridge and the Sydney Opera House among several others.
There's a simulation of Dorchester (Dorset, UK) in Chengdu, the capital of south-west China's Sichuan province in Western China, that houses 200,000 Chinese citizens.
Then there's also Thames Town in Shanghai, a replica of Wyoming's Jackson Hole in Hebei Province, and a fake version of the French Arc de Triomphe in Zhengzhou.
1. London's Tower Bridge in the city of Suzhou
The Chinese Tower Bridge, which resembles London's iconic monument, has four towers instead of two towers in the original and has elevators and coffee shops.
Interestingly, the replica is actually double the size of the original.
It exists over Yuanhe Pond in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province, and was built in 2012.
2. Full-scale replicas of the Great Sphinx of Giza
One of the replicas of the Great Sphinx of Giza was in northeastern Hebei province, located at the foot of the Taihang Mountains in eastern China. It was built to be exactly the same size as the one in Egypt, which stands at some 73.5 meters tall.
However, it had to be demolished after the Egyptian authorities complained to UNESCO.
So the Chinese built a brand new replica in Lanzhou in the north-west part of China.
Then there's another replica of the Great Sphinx of Giza towers. And this one is concrete poured in an unfinished theme park in Chuzhou, China.
3. Replica of Austria's Hallstatt village in Huizhou
The replica of the entire Austrian alpine village of Hallstatt was built in the province of Guangdong in 2012. The "made in China" version of the village cost an estimated USD940 million to build and was conceived by a Chinese mining tycoon.
The original Austrian alpine village of Hallstatt is a UNESCO World Heritage site.
4. Multiple replicas of Eiffel Tower
7. Then there's this white-walled, gold-domed complex inspired by Moscow's Kremlin. It houses several government bureaus and cost about USD3.5 million to built
8. Miniature replicas of the Moai statues
While the original ones are on Easter Island, the replicas line a pedestrian walkway in Beijing. Seen below is a delivery man riding by replicas of Moai statues.
9. There's also a copy of Stonehenge
The Stonehenge replica is next to a new housing development in the east of China.
