The Euromast - winter 8 by Nuance Beeld

About "The Euromast - winter 8"

by Nuance Beeld

About the artwork

The Euromast was erected by architect Huig Maaskant and contractor J.P. van Eesteren in Het Park, near the entrance of the Maas Tunnel, on the occasion of the Floriade in 1960. A restaurant in the shape of a crow's nest was jacked up to a height of 100 metres in five days. The tower was equipped with a replica of a ship's bridge at 32 metres, giving the public an impression of navigation equipment and a chart room.[2] The tower is made of reinforced concrete, has a diameter of 9 metres and walls 30 centimetres thick. To keep the centre of gravity as low as possible - and thus increase stability - the foundations include a 1,900,000 kg block of concrete. The crow's nest, made of steel, hangs 96 metres above the ground and weighs 240,000 kg. Visitors are taken to the original highest point by two lifts, both of which travel at four metres per second.

The building was officially opened by Princess Beatrix on March 25, 1960. The location was strategic; anyone driving to Rotterdam on the motorways of the time could see the 107-metre tower (including the flagpole) rising straight up in front of them above the city. After the opening, the city continued to grow and the buildings got higher. After a few years buildings rose above the Euromast, such as the Medical Faculty building on the Westzeedijk, ten meters higher, in 1968.

Expansion with Space Tower

In 1970 an 85-metre high superstructure was placed on top of the Euromast: the Space Tower, which made the Euromast the hig