Architectural elements devised as defense strategy, turned into design focal points in modern buildings

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Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair, so that I may climb the golden stair …

Towers and turrets, fairytales and fantasies, seem to go hand in hand when architecture and storytelling blend into a marriage of fact and fiction. We often associate towers and turrets with castles and fortifications — and for good reason: These two architectural elements had their beginnings as defense strategies against warring nations and tribes.

Towers, always taller than they are wide, have been utilized by civilizations since prehistoric times. The oldest surviving examples are integrated into the Great Wall of China dating to 210 BC.

Turrets, on the other hand, translate into "little towers." For military reasons, turrets projected vertically from the corner or face of a structure to afford defending soldiers clear sightlines to adjacent walls and provide cover fire against attackers. When the use of forts and castles faded as defense devices, turrets and towers were adopted as decorative elements on virtually every architectural style and building type in existence today.

Buildings can, and often have, both towers and turrets in their design. A turret can be a round or polygonal construction with a conical roof structure that extends above the roofline but has a base always elevated above the ground. Whether constructed of wood framing and siding, brick or stone, turrets afford opportunities for expanded views to the outside and interesting shapes for interior rooms. Because turrets project off the face of the structure, their size is limited by the strength of the materials supporting their weight.

Towers have held the fascination of cultures throughout the world as evidenced by the continued popularity of historic icons such as the Tower of London (circa 1078), the Tower of Pisa (circa 1173), the Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster, known as Big Ben (circa 1859), the Eiffel Tower (circa 1889), and the ever-changing skylines of every major city here and abroad.

Towers are about height and the battle for dominance and commanding views. Perhaps no other example exemplifies this notion better than the story behind the small, walled, medieval city of San Gimignano founded in third century BC. At its peak, this city — located in the rural hills of Tuscany — had 72 towers of varying heights and designs built by competing families within the city in an effort to "one up" their neighbors. Today only 14 towers survive, but there is a sufficient number and caliber to maintain its international prominence.

Examples of towers and turrets abound among domestic, commercial, governmental, religious and industrial architecture and can be found in virtually every documented style of design, in some form or another. Towers and turrets are enjoying a renaissance in domestic and commercial architecture as homeowners and businesses recognize both the added aesthetic and functional value they add to their investments.

This column is contributed by Gregory J. Scott, a local architect with 35 years of national experience in innovation and design.