Used to make medical equipment and the foundational elements of many governmental and private properties, metal plays an integral role in our society. Society would suffer greatly without this natural resource. As a result, many culturally significant buildings have depended on metal for their intrinsic designs. To learn more about the most iconic metal architecture in the world, discover five examples below.
The Willis Tower
Once the tallest skyscraper in the world, the Willis Tower sits proudly in the Windy City and is considered one of the staple features of Chicago’s beautiful skyline. Built more than fifty years ago, the Willis Tower made history due with its dynamic steel build. It was designed and constructed with nine steel beams that still support the building today.
Cloud Gate
Another iconic feature of the city of Chicago, Cloud Gate is a tourist hot spot. Its unique design and beautiful mirrored style allow tourists and guests to make it a selfie-haven. This beautiful piece of metal architecture is coated in stainless steel. It took almost 200 plates of stainless steel sheets to mold it into its iconic design.
The Statue of Liberty
A symbol of freedom and hope, the Statue of Liberty wasn’t always green. In fact, when it arrived over 140 years ago as a gift from France, it was a completely different color than it is today. This is because the staple of American culture is coated in copper. As we all know, copper is a metal that oxidizes over time. As a result, the statue sits on Liberty Island in the shade we’re all currently familiar with: a green patina shade.
Burj Khalifa
Located in Dubai, the Burj Khalifa has become a prominent symbol of the lavish lifestyle of the extremely wealthy city of Dubai. The tallest structure in the world, the Burj Khalifa is made of over 39,000 tons of steel rebar. To put that into perspective, if the rebar were laid across the world, it would stretch over a quarter of the way around the world. That’s quite a lot of steel! Without it, however, the look and construction of the Burj Khalifa would be much different.
The Buckingham Palace
Our last example of iconic metal architecture from around the world is Buckingham Palace. Located in London, this building has become a symbol of royalty and elegance. The lavish design of the palace would not be possible without iron. This is because the wrought iron fencing around the palace completes the entire look of this iconic building. Without it, the palace wouldn’t be as breathtaking. These five examples all have one thing in common: they’re all made from the most common metals used in architecture. As you can see, metal has played an important role in the construction of the most iconic architectural buildings across the world. Without metal, these culturally significant buildings would not be possible.
