The Washington Monument.  This is a picture one is required to take
during a visit to D.C. <br> The Washington Monument, like many monuments
(re: bas relief at Stone Mountain Park near Atlanta), took many years to
build (in this case, 37) due to foibles and difficulty with funding. 
Even with this poor coloring, if you view the full-sized image you can
see the line where the monument changes color because construction
paused for several decades while awaiting funding, thus leaving the
bottom exposed to the elements for many more years than the top.