Post by willi1 on Jul 25, 2022 16:07:51 GMT
The Perthus Pyramid (also called Pyramid of Bofill), is a monument to break the monotony of the Spanish-French border.
In the 1970s, the French South-East Highway Society commissioned Spanish architect Ricardo Bofill for a landmark project on the motorway under construction crossing the French-Spanish border (European route E15). The project was not defined in advance and the execution should correspond to the architect's vision. But one thing was clear: they wanted to break with the monotony of the autobahn, if only at one point. But the costs should remain manageable.
The project was originally intended to be a walk of more than a kilometer, but that turned out to be too ambitious (and expensive) and they opted for plan B: the pyramid. In addition to wanting to add more heterogeneity to the landscape, the architect wanted to pay homage to Catalonia.
A pyramid-shaped hill was thus created, 160 meters on each side and about 75 meters high, built with materials removed during the construction of the motorway.
In the 1970s, the French South-East Highway Society commissioned Spanish architect Ricardo Bofill for a landmark project on the motorway under construction crossing the French-Spanish border (European route E15). The project was not defined in advance and the execution should correspond to the architect's vision. But one thing was clear: they wanted to break with the monotony of the autobahn, if only at one point. But the costs should remain manageable.
The project was originally intended to be a walk of more than a kilometer, but that turned out to be too ambitious (and expensive) and they opted for plan B: the pyramid. In addition to wanting to add more heterogeneity to the landscape, the architect wanted to pay homage to Catalonia.
A pyramid-shaped hill was thus created, 160 meters on each side and about 75 meters high, built with materials removed during the construction of the motorway.
Work began in 1974 and in 1976 the pyramid was inaugurated.
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