Viewpoints · London
The Shard
Also known as: Shard London Bridge
Renzo Piano's 309 m tower — the tallest building in the UK.
Lauren — CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 20 min–45 min
- Best time of year
- Clear days year-round
- Paid entry
- Family-friendly
- Dog-friendly
- Wheelchair accessible
About
The Shard is the 309-metre tower designed by Renzo Piano and completed in 2012 — the tallest building in the United Kingdom and Western Europe. Floors 68–72 contain 'The View from The Shard', a public observation deck reached by a 60-second lift; floors 32 and below are offices, hotel and residential. The faceted glass cladding is meant to evoke the spires of Wren's churches and the masts of historic Thames sailing barges.
Photo gallery
From the Wikipedia article
The Shard, also referred to as the Shard London Bridge and formerly London Bridge Tower, is a 95-storey mixed-use development supertall pyramid-shaped skyscraper, designed by the Italian architect Renzo Piano, in Southwark, London, that forms part of The Shard Quarter development. Standing 309.6 metres (1,016 feet) high, The Shard is the tallest building in the United Kingdom and Western Europe; and the seventh-tallest building in Europe. The Shard replaced Southwark Towers, a 24-storey office block built on the site in 1975. The Shard's construction began in March 2009; it was topped out on 30 March 2012 and inaugurated on 5 July 2012. Practical completion was achieved in November 2012. The tower's privately operated observation deck, The View from The Shard, was opened to the public on 1 February 2013. The glass-clad pyramidal tower has 72 habitable floors, with a viewing gallery and open-air observation deck on the 72nd floor, at a height of 244 metres (801 ft). The Shard was developed by Sellar Property Group on behalf of LBQ Ltd and is jointly owned by Sellar Property (5%) and the State of Qatar (95%).
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
Architecture
]] Renzo Piano, the project's architect, designed The Shard as a spire-like sculpture emerging from the River Thames. Piano's design met criticism from English Heritage, who claimed the building would be "a shard of glass through the heart of historic London", giving the building its name, The Shard. Piano considered the slender, spire-like form of the tower a positive addition to the London skyline, recalling the church steeples featured in historic engravings of the city, and believed that its presence would be far more delicate than opponents of the project alleged. He proposed a sophisticated use of glazing, with expressive façades of angled glass panes intended to reflect sunlight and…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 51.5045, -0.0865
- District
- Southwark
- Parish
- Southwark, unparished area
- Postcode
- SE1 9SG
- Parliamentary constituency
- Bermondsey and Old Southwark
- Phone
- +44 20 3102 3930
- Established
- 2012
- Official site
- jaumeplensa.com
Sources
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is The Shard?
- The Shard is in London, United Kingdom (postcode SE1 9SG), in the parish of Southwark, unparished area.
- When was The Shard built?
- Built or established in 2012. Designed by Renzo Piano.
- Who owns The Shard?
- The Shard is owned by State of Qatar (95%) <br> Sellar Property Group (5%).
- How do I get to The Shard?
- Drivers can navigate to postcode SE1 9SG. It sits within the Bermondsey and Old Southwark parliamentary constituency.