The Shard

Last crawled date: 1 year, 6 months ago

My 195th Model! The Shard, also referred to as the Shard of Glass, Shard London Bridge and formerly London Bridge Tower is a 95-storey skyscraper in London. Its construction began in March 2009; it was topped out on 30 March 2012 and inaugurated on 5 July 2012. It opened to the public on 1 February 2013. Standing 309.6 metres (1,016 ft) high, the Shard is the tallest building in the European Union, and the second-tallest in Europe, after Moscow's Mercury City Tower. The Shard is also the second-tallest free-standing structure in the United Kingdom, after the concrete tower at the Emley Moor transmitting station. The Shard replaced Southwark Towers, a 24-storey office block built on the site in Southwark in 1975. Renzo Piano, the Shard's architect, worked with the architectural firm Broadway Malyan during the planning stage. The glass-clad pyramidal tower has 72 habitable floors, with a viewing gallery and open-air observation deck – the UK's highest – on the 72nd floor, at a height of 245 metres (804 ft) though compeared to the Observation Deck of the Former World Trade Center, it seems quite bland! As a Londener it is the tallest Building we see! Enjoy!