Ciudad Mitad del Mundo, or Middle of the World City, is the home of the Monument to the Equator in San Antonio parish, Quito, Ecuador. It lies about 16 miles (26 kilometers) north of the center of Quito. Architect and contractor Alfredo Fabián Páez built it between 1979 and 1982 for the Prefecture of Pichincha.
The monument is 98 feet (30 meters) tall. It is made of iron and concrete covered with cut and polished andesite stone. A globe on top is 15 feet (4.5 meters) across and weighs about 5 tons.
A line marking the equator runs down the east-facing staircase and across the plaza. A small ethnographic museum of indigenous cultures sits inside the monument. The grounds also hold a planetarium, a miniature model of Quito and restaurants. The article says the marked line lies about 787 feet (240 meters) south of the true equator.
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