Shalom Meir Tower
| Shalom Meir Tower | |
|---|---|
מגדל שלום מאיר | |
 | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Status | Completed |
| Type | Government, Commercial, Residential |
| Location |  Tel Aviv, Israel |
| Construction started | 1963 |
| Opening | 1965 |
| Height | |
| Roof | 120 to 130 m (390 to 430 ft) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 34 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Yitzhak Pearlstein, Gideon Ziv, Meir Levy |
Shalom Meir Tower (Hebrew: מגדל שלום מאיר, Migdal Shalom Meir; commonly known as Migdal Shalom, Hebrew: מגדל שלום) is an office tower in Tel Aviv, Israel. It was Israel's first skyscraper. When its construction was completed in 1965, it was the tallest building in the Middle East and rivaled the tallest buildings in Europe in height. To build the tower, the historic Herzliya Hebrew Gymnasium had to be demolished. The Shalom Tower now houses the Tel Aviv Center comprising a number of permanent and temporary exhibitions dedicated to the beginnings and development of Tel Aviv.[1]
History
The tower was built on the site of the Herzliya Hebrew High School, better known as Herzliya Gymnasium. The school's architecturally and historically significant structure was razed and the school relocated in order to build the tower in 1962. This decision was later regretted and the contour of the Herzliya Gymnasium became the emblem of the Society for Preservation of Israel Heritage Sites (SPIHS).[2]
The tower was built by the "Meir Brothers", Moshe, Mordechai and Menachem Meir, who named it after their father, Reb Shalom-Shachna Meir, born in Sanok in Galicia.[3] Shalom-Shachna Meir married the daughter of a rich manufacturer from the Romanian region of Moldova, where he lived until 1920, becoming a successful businessman as well as a leader of the local Zionists.[3] In 1920 he emigrated to Ottoman Palestine where he became an important public figure in the early years of Tel Aviv, a member of the town's first city council, and one of the founders of Ramat Gan.[3]
Description
Migdal Shalom has 34 floors and stands at a height of 120–130 m.[4][5]
50,000 cubic meters of concrete, 4,000 tons of steel, 35 kilometers of water pipes, and 500 kilometres of wiring were used in the tower.
The building has a cream hue tile facade which was created especially for the tower and was manufactured in Italy.
A subway station was built under the tower block but rails were never laid and the station remains empty and disconnected from any rail system.[6]
Tel Aviv Center (museum and galleries)
The ground-floor retail promenade features a mosaic mural by the Israeli artist Nachum Gutman[7][8] facing another one by David Sharir.[9] Further permanent and temporary exhibitions dedicated to the early decades of Tel Aviv are housed on the ground floor and first floor.[1]
See also
References
- ^ a b Shalom Tower website: Discover Tel Aviv Center [1]
- ^ What to see on Herzl Street, birthplace of the first modern Jewish city
- ^ a b c Ascher Bit: Reb Shalom-Shachna Meir of blessed memory, translated by Jerrold Landau. On JewishGen.org, accessed 4 April, 2016 [2]
- ^ http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=104855
- ^ http://jpress.org.il/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin_TAU.asp?From=Archive&Skin=TAUHe&BaseHref=DAV/1965/07/09&EntityId=Ar01000&ViewMode=HTML Template:He icon
- ^ "Tel Aviv Light Rail Metro, Israel". Retrieved 23 December 2013.
- ^ Shalom Tower Galleries: Nahum Gutman's Mosaic Wall [3]
- ^ http://mosaicartsource.wordpress.com/2007/02/17/israel-may-1995-tel-aviv-mosaic-mural/
- ^ Shalom Tower Galleries: David Sharir's Mosaic Wall [4]
External links
- Shalom Tower Galleries official website [5]
- Lappin, Yaakov (November 17, 2010). "Large Fire Breaks Out in Tel Aviv's Shalom Tower". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 2010-11-19.