The Shard, referred to as the Shard of Glass, Shard London Bridge and formerly London Bridge Tower, is a 72-storey skyscraper

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The Shard, also referred to as the Shard of Glass, Shard London Bridge and formerly London Bridge Tower, is a 72-storey skyscraper in London. Its construction began in March 2009; it was topped out on 30 March 2012 and inaugurated on 5 July 2012. It opened to the public on 1 February 2013. Standing 306 metres (1,004 ft) high, the Shard is the tallest building in the European Union, and the second tallest in Europe, after the Mercury City Tower in Moscow. The Shard is also the second-tallest freestanding structure in the United Kingdom, after the concrete tower at the Emley Moor transmitting station. The Shard replaced Southwark Towers, a 24-storey office block built on the site in Southwark in 1975. Renzo Piano, the Shard's architect, worked with the architectural firm Broadway Malyan during the planning stage. The glass-clad pyramidal tower has 72 habitable floors, with a viewing gallery and open-air observation deck – the UK's highest – on the 72nd floor, at a height of metres (802 ft).

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Location: The Shard, London Bridge and formerly London Bridge Tower, is a 72-storey skyscraper
Photo credit: © Rik Hamilton / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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Keywords: 306, building, european, high, metres, shard, standing, tallest, union