In 1954, a man built a house after his older brother inherited the biggest part of their father’s lot
Siblings are the best things that could happen to us… well, not everyone thinks like me. Some become confidants, others are just plain annoying. Some fights for money and power can break this bond, just like it happened in this case.
A man built a very tall, thin house next to his brother’s house, just so he could block the ocean view he loved so much. Things like inheritances and revenge transformed this house into one of Asia’s most famous properties.
This is a three-story building. In its widest part, it’s only four meters wide, and the thinnest side barely reaches 60 centimeters. It’s located in Beirut, Lebanon, and it’s considered one of the thinnest buildings in the world.
This building is more commonly known as “The Grudge.” The story goes that, many years ago, back in the ‘50s, a father inherited a big lot to his two children. Due to infrastructure projects, the district decided to split it in two.
The first brother ended up with the bigger lot, while the second one owned the smaller portion of the triangle. They argued for more even distribution, but they couldn’t reach an agreement.
The youngest heir decided to take revenge. In 1954, he built a thin building to anger his brother. It looks like a thick wall, blocking his brother’s view of the ocean.
But it wasn’t only an act of aesthetic revenge: it also involved money. The building reduced the land’s value considerably.
Despite its size, it’s fully habitable. It has two apartments on each floor. It was used as a brothel during a while and then converted to a refugee for families fleeing the war.
Destroying this building would be too expensive. Despite the neighbors trying to tear it down, it can’t be done legally. The lot is so thin it doesn’t allow any buildings.
Siblings should have strong family bonds and not foster animosity between them. They’re the people we’ll share most of our lives with. Let’s hope they reconciled after their deaths.