Al Faisaliah Tower
Skyscraper in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Al Faisaliah Tower (Arabic: برج الفيصلية) is a pyramid-shaped commercial skyscraper and mixed-use complex located in the al-Olaya district of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The 267-metre-high office tower, the centerpiece of the Foster + Partners development, it is notable for having been the first skyscraper built in Saudi Arabia,[2] and for the monumental stained glass wall of its lobby, designed by architectural artist Brian Clarke in collaboration with Norman Foster.[3] It was the largest building in Saudi Arabia between 2000 and 2002 and currently is the seventh tallest building in the country, after Kingdom Centre, Burj Rafal and Abraj Al Bait.[4] The tower is named after King Faisal bin Abdulaziz,[5] and presently ranks as the 325th tallest building in the world.[6]
| Al Faisaliah Tower | |
|---|---|
 Al Faisaliah Tower and Al Faisaliah Hotel (left), 2023 | |
  Location within Saudi Arabia | |
| Record height | |
| Tallest in Saudi Arabia from 2000 to 2002[I] | |
| Preceded by | Riyadh TV Tower |
| Surpassed by | Kingdom Center |
| General information | |
| Type | Multi-purpose residential and commercial complex |
| Location | Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |
| Coordinates | 24°41′25″N 46°41′07″E |
| Named for | Faisal bin Abdulaziz |
| Construction started | 1997 |
| Completed | 14 May 2000 |
| Cost | $800 million USD |
| Height | |
| Roof | 267 m (876 ft)[1] |
| Top floor | 195.0 m (640 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 44 (30 above ground) |
| Lifts/elevators | 44 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Foster & Partners |
| Main contractor | Saudi Binladin Group |
First appointed to the architectural practice Foster + Partners in 1994, the complex was commissioned by Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal,[3] with construction begun in 1997. The complex is made up of the central office tower, a five-star hotel, a three-storey retail mall, and a banqueting and conference hall. The skyscraper comprises 30 floors of office space, above which, at 200 metres above ground level, an observation deck provides a panoramic view of Riyadh. The 240,000-square-metre Centre was completed in May 2000, with the skyscraper opened to the public in the same month.[7] The skyscraper, also called the Star Dome, contains one of Saudi Arabia's premier restaurants, "The Globe", located in the sphere above the observation deck, possessing 360 degree views of the city.
Stained glass
In 1999, the artist Brian Clarke, who had formerly collaborated with Norman Foster on architectural art proposals for Stansted and Chep Lap Kok airports, was commissioned to design a 22,000 sq. ft. wall of glass for the modular atrial space connecting the complex's hotel, north of the tower's base, and the tower's residential and retail developments.[8] Clarke's initial designs for the project, produced in 1994 and incorporating traditionally-leaded stained glass and an interrelated glass mosaic floor for what was then known as 'The Link Building', developed in tandem with the architect's resolution of the complex,[9] and were resolved as an integral, five-storey-high glass art 'skin', considered a landmark development in the history of stained glass.[10][11]
- The Shard, building in London
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