Ever wondered why the world’s most popular buildings are shaped like a man’s tool?

Sigmund Freud metaphorically drew a comparison between ‘high achievement and the acquisition of wealth as building monuments to our penises. And the phallic architecture even in the modern day skyscrapers is a proof that the world still believes a phallic structure symbolises strength, power, male domination and political authority. Even though we thought that phallic architecture is an age-old thing, it is still prevalent and some of the popular hi-rise buildings prove the fact.

From the Empire State building to the Leaning Tower of Pisa and Burj Qatar, these landmark skyscrapers stand tall depicting power and authority. Here are some of the building that have a phallic architecture and look like giant penises.

The 72-feet high Hyde Park Obelisk, located in Hyde Park, Sydney Australia is both a former sewer ventshaft and a notable landmark in the Sydney CBD. Its phallic appearance was emphasised when the AIDS Council of NSW (ACON) temporarily installed a giant condom over the Obelisk as a part of HIV awareness campaign.

30 St Mary Axe opened in London in April 2004. Designed by Norman Foster, London’s first environmentally sustainable tall building using recycled and recyclable materials, has been compared to the phallus and a gherkin, which also is a slang term for "small penis"; its nicknames include Gherkin, the Erotic Gherkin, Towering Innuendo and the Crystal Phallus.

The Burj Qatar or Burj Doha was designed by French architect Jean Nouvel. The public has noted the building's ‘phallic form’, suggestive of male sexual strength or qualities. The nickname Condom Tower is given to the building by the public for its phallic form.

The Oriental Pearl TV Tower, located in Pudong Park in Lujiazui, Shanghai, China, is one of the tallest TV and radio tower at 468 metres. The New York Times described it as a "great phallic monster of truly monumental ugliness, a bit like an enormous asparagus with a silver ball on top." The long steel column tower is considered by some to be proof of the city's phallic worship, and that such skyscrapers indicative of wealth are an increasing aphrodisiac of the materialist in Chinese cities.

The monumental column in Luqa, Malta - Colonna Mediterranea, was described by its artist Paul Vella Critien as an ‘Egyptian symbol’. However looks like a large penile, and therefore was largely described to be a ‘phallic monument’.

One of the Seven Wonders of the Medieval World. The Leaning Tower of Pisa has always had structural issues. The resemblance of the tower to a penis has seen the "Leaning Tower of Pisa" became a sexual slang term for a half erect penis. Local retailers also made souvenirs featuring underwear with the tower resembling a penis. But after the Catholic Church denounced the promotion of the tower in such a manner, retailers can now be fined up to €500 for selling items promoting the tower as a penis.

The 102-story Empire State Building, located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City is one of the world's most famous landmarks and an American icon. This tall American skyscraper is symbolic of the American superpower and the 102-storey building is inspired by the phallic architecture.