Work on the Eiffel Tower's foundations started on January, 28 1887. The foundations were complete by June 30 and the erection of the ironwork began. The very visible work on-site was complemented by the enormous amount of exacting preparatory work that was entailed: the drawing office produced 1,700 general drawings and 3,629 detailed drawings of the 18,038 different parts needed. The critical stage of joining the four legs at the first level was complete by the end of March 1888. Although construction involved 300 on-site employees, only one person died thanks to Eiffel's stringent safety precautions and use of movable stagings, guard-rails, and screens. Continue reading for more rare photographs from the past you might not have seen before.