Warsaw Palace of Culture and Science

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Palace of Culture and Science

A statue holding a book of Marx, Engels, and Lenin, with the name Stalin plastered over

The Palace of Culture and Science (Polish: Pałac Kultury i Nauki, also abbreviated PKiN) in Warsaw is the tallest building in Poland and the world's 164th tallest building. The building was originally known as the Joseph Stalin Palace of Culture and Science (Pałac Kultury i Nauki imienia Józefa Stalina), but in the wake of destalinization the dedication was revoked; Stalin's name was hastily removed from the interior lobby and one of the building's sculptures.

The building currently serves as an exhibition centre and office complex. It is also used for FM and TV broadcasting. It is 230.68 metres (757 ft) tall which includes the height of the spire of 43 metres. There are 3288 rooms on 42 floors, with an overall area of 123,000 m², containing cinemas, theatres, museums, offices, bookshops, and a large conference hall for 3000 people.

Construction started in 1952 and lasted until 1955. A gift from the Soviet Union to the people of Poland, the tower was constructed, using Soviet plans, almost entirely by 3500 workers from the Soviet Union, of whom 16 died in accidents during the construction. The architecture of the building is closely related to several similar skyscrapers built in the Soviet Union of the same era, most notably the Moscow State University. However, the main architect Lev Rudnev incorporated some Polish architectural details into the project by traveling around Poland and seeing the architecture. The monumental walls are headed with pieces of masonry copied from renaissance houses and palaces of Kraków and Zamość.

Shortly after opening, the building hosted the 5th World Festival of Youth and Students. Many visiting dignitaries toured the Palace, and it also hosted performances by notable international artists, such as a 1967 concert by the Rolling Stones, the first by a major western rock group behind the Iron Curtain.[1] [2]

As the city's most visible landmark, the building was controversial from its inception. Many Poles initially hated the building because they considered it to be a symbol of Soviet domination, and at least some of that negative feeling persists until today. Some have also argued that, regardless of its political connotations, the building destroyed the esthetic balance of the old city and imposed dissonance with other buildings.

The Palace dominates its own view.

The inhabitants of Warsaw still commonly use nicknames to refer to the palace, notably Pekin (Peking in Polish, because of its abbreviated name PKiN) or Pajac ("puppet", a word that sounds close to Pałac). It is also nicknamed, in "gratitude" to Stalin, "Stalin's Penis." The terrace on the 30th floor, at 114 metres, is a well-known tourist attraction with a panoramic view of the city. An old joke held that the best views of Warsaw were available from the building: it was the only place in the city from where it could not be seen, a claim made for several other skyscrapers.

However, over time, and especially in recent years, Warsaw has acquired a number of other skyscrapers of comparable height, so that the Palace now fits somewhat more harmoniously into the city skyline. Furthermore, since Soviet domination over Poland ended in 1989, the negative symbolism of the building has much diminished. Four 6.3-metre clock faces were added to the top of the building in 2000, and it is now the world's second-tallest clock tower, after the NTT DoCoMo Yoyogi Building.

[edit] Photos of the Palace

Construction	During the communist era	Socialist Realist sculptures surrounding the Palace	The Palace at dusk
The Palace at night	View north from the viewing gallery at dusk	Warsaw skyline, with the Palace on the left	Other skyscrapers are gradually diminishing the prominence of the Palace in Warsaw's skyline