Introduction

In 1925, Victor Lustig was staying in Paris and noticed a newspaper article discussing the expense associated with maintaining the Eiffel Tower. The tower had originally been built as the centerpiece of the 1889 World's Fair; it was designed so that it could be quickly taken apart. By 1925, the monument had fallen into disrepair, and the city was finding it increasingly expensive to maintain. Lustig set to work first hiring a forger to produce fake government stationery for him, and then invited a group of scrap metal dealers to a secret meeting. He introduced himself as the deputy director general of the French Ministry of Posts and telegraphs and explained they were selling the tower for scrap.