Palazzo Lombardia & Torre Pirelli
Palazzo Lombardia & Torre Pirelli features on the Gingerguide audio walk through Milan. Give it roughly ~45 min: enough to look, hear a two to three minute story on the spot, and ask the AI guide whatever the story leaves open.
- Type landmark
- Suggested visit ~45 min
- Milan Milan guide
About Palazzo Lombardia & Torre Pirelli
Milan's two great vertical landmarks north of the centre, the curving glass Palazzo Lombardia (Pei Cobb Freed, 2010), the tallest public building in Italy, and the historic Torre Pirelli (Gio Ponti, 1958), Italy's first true skyscraper and a masterpiece of postwar Italian design.
North of Porta Nuova and the Garibaldi station, two remarkable towers define the skyline. The Torre Pirelli, known as the Pirellone, is a landmark of postwar Italian modernism: a 127-metre reinforced concrete tower designed by Gio Ponti in collaboration with structural engineer Pier Luigi Nervi and completed in 1958. With its diamond-shaped floor plan tapering to a point at both ends, eliminating the conventional rectangular box, it was Italy's first genuine skyscraper and is considered one of the finest examples of mid-century modern architecture in Europe. For fifty years it was the tallest building in Italy. Today it houses the regional government of Lombardy. Adjacent to it stands the much larger Palazzo Lombardia (2010), designed by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, a complex of five interconnected glass towers centred on a soaring covered atrium. Its observation deck on the 39th floor is open to visitors and offers panoramic views of the city and the Alps.
Did you know? Gio Ponti designed the Torre Pirelli's distinctive diamond-shaped floor plan in collaboration with Pier Luigi Nervi, the tower has no corner columns, with all structural load carried by six narrow concrete pylons, two at each pointed end and two in the middle of each long side.
How long is a visit to Palazzo Lombardia & Torre Pirelli?
Set aside roughly ~45 min for Palazzo Lombardia & Torre Pirelli. That covers a good look and the narrated story, and because you set the pace you can always stay on.
Is Palazzo Lombardia & Torre Pirelli worth your time?
Palazzo Lombardia & Torre Pirelli is among the 32 narrated highlights the Gingerguide team chose for Milan, so it is worth a look. Hear the story for the context, then ask the AI guide for anything more.
Nearby stops in Milan
Hear the story of Palazzo Lombardia & Torre Pirelli
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