Worlds Tallest Buildings Throughout Time

The Great Pyramid of Giza in Cairo, Egypt was the tallest structure in the world for over 3,800 years at 146.5 metres (481 ft).

The title then passed to various churches between the 13th century and the dawn of the 20th century, with Ulm Minster in Germany reaching as high as 161 meters (530 ft), barely higher than the pyramids built thousands of years earlier.

It was only really the explosion of sky scraper buildings in the USA that got things moving again. Philadelphia City Hall in 1901 finally overtook the churches at 167 metres (548 ft) and then there was no looking back:

Source: The Jennings Report - click the picture to EMBIGGEN

The building on the far right of the diagram is the Burj Khalifa in Dubai at 828 metres (2,717 ft). The last three record holders have been in the Far East, which is over twice the size of the last US record holder, proof that Asia is taking over in the field of enormously tall buildings.

All of which begs the question, how high can we go? Of the list of proposed sky scrapers, the tallest one which has an estimated completion date is the Dubai City Tower at a whopping 2,400 meters (7,900 ft) which would be three times the size of the Burj Khalifa if it were ever to get built!

And that doesn't count various proposed space elevators that would be measured in miles high...!