First Church of Christ, Scientist, Boston
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- For other buildings called this, see First Church of Christ, Scientist (disambiguation)
The First Church of Christ, Scientist (Christian Science Center in common reference) is the mother church and administrative headquarters of the Christian Science Church and is located in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts.
Designed in the 1960s by the firm of renowned architect I.M. Pei, the 14-acre Christian Science Plaza along Huntington Avenue includes a reflecting pool and fountain that make it one of Boston's most visually recognizable sites and a popular tourist attraction.[1]
Another draw for tourists is the three-story tall Mapparium, a stained glass globe that visitors view from the inside.
[edit] History
The church itself was built in 1894. A modest gray stone structure, it is often overlooked by casual visitors as it is dwarfed by the much larger domed extension added in 1906. It boasts one of the world's largest pipe organs, built in 1952 by the Aeolian-Skinner Company of Boston (Specification). The Mary Baker Eddy Library is housed in an 11-story structure originally finished in 1934 for the Christian Science Publishing Society.
The present plaza was constructed in the 1970s to include a large administration building, a colonnade, a reflecting pool and a fountain. This was designed by Araldo A. Cossutta, then a partner in Pei's firm.
[edit] Image gallery
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