Portal:Architecture/Did you know/Archive1

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… that the Giliardi family of architects, originally from Ticino, Switzerland established themselves in Russia in the middle of 18th century?
… that the Architecture of Portugal has unique examples of Arquitecture chã (plain architecture), Manueline (pictured) and Pombaline style?
… that Domenico Giliardi (1785–1845), a Swiss architect, was among those charged with rebuilding Moscow, after the Great Fire of 1812.
… that Heliopolis style is a unique mixture of the Moorish, Arabic and European architectural styles in Cairo, Egypt?
… that the American Neoclassical Nathaniel Russell House has an entirely self-supporting, elliptical spiral staircase?
… that the Mossehaus in Berlin by Mendelsohn and Neutra is an early example of streamlined architecture?
… that the Great Mosque of Djenné in Mali is the largest mud brick or adobe building in the world? (pictured)
… that the San Petronio Basilica in Bologna is host to the longest sundial in the world, built in 1655 and designed by the famous astronomer Giovanni Domenico Cassini (66.8 meters)?
…that theVall de Boí in Catalonia has the densest concentration of Romanesque architecture in Europe?
… that the buildings by Cremer & Wolffenstein on Kaiser Wilhelm Straße were among the first Neo-baroque buildings of Berlin? (pictured)
…that Erich Mendelsohn was the first foreign architect in to be asked to work in the USSR, designing the Red Flag Textile Factory in 1925? He also designed the Cohen House in 1936 with Serge Chermayeff on Old Church Street, Chelsea, London
…that the "Chicago window" used on the Marquette Building is considered a trademark of the Chicago school of architecture? (pictured)
…that the work of Australian architect George Temple-Poole has been assessed by the National Trust of Australia as 'essential to the heritage of Australia and must be preserved'?
…that the Aga Khan Award for Architecture is the largest architectural award in the world with a total prize of US$ 500,000?
...that the Knickerbocker Hotel in New York City was host to the world-famous opera singer Enrico Caruso who sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" from the window of his room on Armistice Day?
...that the Villa Romana del Casale is the richest, largest and most complex collection of late Roman mosaics in the world? (pictured)
...that the Barbican of Warsaw became obsolete almost immediately after its construction in 1548?
...that St. Michael's Castle was built like a medieval fortress for the personal protection of the Russian Emperor Paul I, who ironically was assassinated in his bedroom shortly after moving in to his new castle?
...that a church of the Order of the Holy Ghost once stood at the site of the Juliusz Słowacki Theatre in Kraków?
...that the Certosa di Pavia was commissioned by Gian Galeazzo Visconti to be built halfway between his two courts in Milan and Pavia?
...that Remuh Synagogue is the only functioning synagogue in Kraków, Poland?
...that the only remaining part of the Palais Strousberg after the Second World War were the gates complete with the British coats of arms and they were built into the modern British Embassy in Berlin, erected on the same site in the 1990s?
... that since 1994, the mural arts program of the Philadelphia Anti-Graffiti Network has created more than 2,500 murals across Philadelphia?
…that the Lovell House by Richard Neutra was the first steel frame house (1929)?
…that the destination hotel became popular in the 1800s, and their number has expanded to present times, along with the elaborateness of their amenities?
…that Beckomberga Hospital (pictured) in Stockholm was designed according to a strict symmetrical pattern and used to be one of the largest psychiatric hospitals in Europe?
…that the Château de Rosny (pictured), the birthplace and seat of Henri IV's minister Duc de Sully, was largely stripped of its furniture and neglected after it was acquired by a Japanese company in 1984?
…that four years before her death, Madame de Pompadour paid almost one million livres to buy the Château de Menars (pictured), selling some pearl bracelets to meet the first payment?
…that the Shell Service Station (pictured) in Winston-Salem, North Carolina was chosen for the National Register of Historic Places as an example of folly architecture, and over $50,000 has been spent restoring it to its original condition?
…that the McLean County Courthouse and Square in Bloomington, Illinois, a Registered Historic Place, is home to multiple historic buildings built from the 1850s to the 1920s, including the old county courthouse, constructed in 1903?
…that Fort Randolph was an American Revolutionary War fort where Cornstalk, a Shawnee chief, was murdered in 1777?
....that a crow-stepped gable is a roof slope design arising in the Middle Ages which was decorative, but also facilitated access to chimneys for maintenance?
...that the Viipuri Municipal Library (pictured), built to Aalto's groundbreaking design in 1935, was abandoned for a decade following the transfer of Viipuri to the Soviet Union?
... that local farmers would drive rock laden wagons onto the Ada Covered Bridge to prevent it washing away during floods (pictured)?
...that all buildings of the Vitra furniture factory in Germany have been designed by internationally renowned architects, including Frank O. Gehry (production hall pictured), Nicholas Grimshaw, Zaha Hadid, Tadao Ando and Álvaro Siza?
...that the Kandariya Mahadeva (pictured) is one of the best examples of Hindu temples preserved from the medieval period in India?
... that the Catalan architect Enric Miralles died before seeing the completion of his largest building: the Scottish Parliament Building" (pictured)?
... that the Neo-Renaissance architectural style encompasses such dissimilar structures as the Opera Garnier and Hôtel de Ville in Paris, the National Theatre in Prague, the Reichstag in Berlin, Mentmore Towers near London, Vladimir Palace in Saint Petersburg, and the Public Library in Boston?
… that Finials were once believed to act as a deterrent to witches on broomsticks attempting to land on one's roof?
… that Jørn Utzon won the competition to design the Sydney Opera House despite the fact that he submitted only preliminary drawings?
… that novelty architecture is made in the shape of objects like hot dogs or giant hats?
… that Inigo Jones (15 July 1573 – 21 June 1652) is regarded as the first significant English architect?