View source for The Gherkin

{{Infobox building
| name                = 30 St Mary Axe
| image               = 30 St Mary Axe from Leadenhall Street.jpg
| caption             = 30 St Mary Axe, with [[St Andrew Undershaft]] in the foreground, pictured from [[Leadenhall Street]]
| location            = [[St. Mary Axe]]<br />[[London]], [[United Kingdom]]
| coordinates         = {{coord|51|30|52|N|00|04|49|W|type:landmark_region:GB_scale:5000|display=inline,title}}
| roof                = {{convert|180|m|ft|0}}
| start_date          = 2001
| completion_date     = 2003<ref name=skanska/>
| opening             = 2004<ref name=emporisdata/>
| building_type       = Office
| floor_count         = 41
| floor_area          = {{convert|47950|m2|sqft|-2}}
| architect           = [[Foster and Partners]]
| structural_engineer = [[Arup]]
| main_contractor     = [[Skanska]]
| references          = [http://www.emporis.com/building/30stmaryaxe-london-unitedkingdom 30 St Mary Axe] at [[Emproris]]
}}
'''30 St Mary Axe''' is a [[skyscraper]] in [[London]]'s [[finance|financial]] district, the [[City of London]]. It was formerly named the '''Swiss Re Building''', after [[Swiss Reinsurance Company]]. The tower is also known as '''"The Gherkin"'''. The building was finished in December 2003. It was opened at the end of May 2004.<ref name=emporisdata/> Swiss Re Tower has 41 floors. The tower is {{convert|180|m|ft|0}} tall.<ref name=skanska/> It is on the site of the former Baltic Exchange, which was badly damaged in 1992 by the explosion of a bomb by the [[Provisional Irish Republican Army|Provisional IRA]].<ref name=emporisdata/><ref name=irabomb/>

30 St Mary Axe was [[design]]ed by [[Norman Foster, Baron Foster of Thames Bank|Norman Foster]] and [[Arup]] engineers.<ref name=arup/> It was built by [[Skanska]] in 2001–2003.<ref name=skanska/>

The building has become an [[icon]]ic [[symbol]] of London. It is one of the city's most well known examples of [[modern architecture]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://modernarchitecturelondon.com/pages/30stmaryaxe.php |title=30 St. Mary Axe &#124; modern architecture london |access-date=2012-11-03 |archive-date=2012-11-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121116074231/http://modernarchitecturelondon.com/pages/30stmaryaxe.php |url-status=dead }}</ref>
[[File:Gherkin, Londres, Inglaterra, 2014-08-07, DD 053.JPG|thumbnail|left|Night view]]
==References==
{{reflist|refs=
<ref name=emporisdata>{{cite web|url=http://www.emporis.com/application/?nav=building&lng=3&id=100089|title=30 St Mary Axe|publisher=Emporis|accessdate=2010-02-04}}</ref>

<ref name=arup>{{cite web|publisher=Arup| accessdate=2010-02-04 |url=http://www.arup.com/Projects/30_St_Mary_Axe.aspx |title=30 St Mary Axe (The Gherkin)| archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20100218191001/http://www.arup.com/Projects/30_St_Mary_Axe.aspx| archivedate= 18 February 2010}}</ref>

<ref name=skanska>{{cite web|url=http://www.skanska.co.uk/en/Projects/Display-project/?pid=66|title=30 St Mary Axe, London|accessdate=2010-02-04|archiveurl=https://www.webcitation.org/5nIR2V7z9?url=http://www.skanska.co.uk/en/Projects/Display-project/?pid=66|archivedate=2010-02-04|publisher=Skanska|url-status=dead}}</ref>

<ref name=irabomb>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/april/24/newsid_2523000/2523345.stm |publisher=BBC News |title=1993: IRA bomb devastates City of London |accessdate=2010-02-02 |archivedate=27 April 2009 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090427102926/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/april/24/newsid_2523000/2523345.stm |date=24 April 1993 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gherkin, The}}
[[Category:Architectural styles]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in the City of London]]
[[Category:Skyscrapers in the United Kingdom]]