Five years ago, the admired yet despised Střep was opened

London - Five years ago, on July 5, 2012, the controversial skyscraper nicknamed The Shard was opened in London. With a height of 310 meters, this new landmark of London became the tallest building in Europe at the time, and it still ranks among the tallest buildings on the continent. The skyscraper was designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano, who is also known as a co-architect of the Pompidou Centre in Paris, and has 72 occupied floors.

The grand opening of the skyscraper was attended by Prince Andrew, the son of Queen Elizabeth II, and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr Al Thani, whose country primarily financed the construction of the building. The construction of the building cost £450 million (14.3 billion CZK) and began in 2009 on the site of the Southwark Towers office complex built in 1975, which was demolished in 2008.

The high-rise building, which is now a tourist attraction, has also faced sharp criticism. National heritage defenders argue that it is in the wrong location and damages the view of historic sites such as the Parliament and St. Paul's Cathedral. "The Shard has forever scarred the face of London," wrote commentator Simon Jenkins in The Guardian. Concerns have also been expressed by the intergovernmental United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).