Monument of Neutrality, Ashgabat Known as ‘the Tripod’, the monument was built in 1998 on the orders of Turkmenistan’s then-president Saparmurat Niyazov to commemorate the country’s official position of neutrality. The 75m structure was topped by a 12m gold-plated statue of Niyazov that roated to face the sun. It was moved to the southern part of the city in 2010

Photograph: Frank Herfort