by We took an extended guided tour of Philadelphia City Hall, an architectural gem at the heart of the city.
The building is in the Second Empire style, begun in 1871 but not finished until 1901. It has nearly 700 rooms, and used a whopping 88 million bricks to construct. The cost was $24 million (in late 19th century dollars)!
The original plan was for it to the world’s tallest building, but by the time it was completed, it was surpassed by the Washington Monument, the Eiffel Tower, and the Mole Antonelliana (in Italy). However, at 548 feet tall (including the statue on top, which seems a little like cheating to me), it did manage to earn the distinction of the world’s tallest habitable building, which it remained until 1908.
Sculptor Alexander Milne Calder (grandfather of the renowned contemporary sculptor Alexander Calder) created more than 250 sculptures for inside and outside the building. Atop the building is a 37-foot-tall bronze statue of state and city founder William Penn (1644–1718), created by Calder. It was installed in 1894 and remains the tallest statue atop any building in the world. Thanks to the scroll in Penn’s hand hanging at his side, a fun fact is that from certain angles around the city, Penn looks to be – um, well, airing himself out, shall we say.
An observation deck sits just under the statue, which is open to experience after admittance is paid. The clock faces on each side of the tower are each 26 feet in diameter – bigger than the famed Big Ben (23 feet)! Bronze eagles with 12-foot wingspans sit above the tower’s four clocks.
There was lots of beautiful tile work throughout the building, as well.
