Buzludzha
The initial idea for Buzludzha was a large star monument on the top of Buzludzha peak, to commemorate the place where the Bulgarian Social Democratic Workers Party was founded, these original plans were shelved in 1960, but revived 10 years later with changes to accomodate a heated central chamber and a studier construction to better withstand the temperature and weather extremes that can occur at the peak (high winds and low temperatures which can go as low as -25 °C / -13 °F).
The architect Georgi Stoilov's idea was to create a monument that could become timeless, by incorporating both ancient and futuristic motifs into his design. He lists both the Roman Pantheon and the sci-fi films of the 1950s amongst his inspirations for Buzludzha.
Work began on the Buzludzha Monument on 23rd January 1974 and in total over 6,000 people contributed to the building including 500 soldiers and 14 artists for each mosaic panel, overall the monument took 70,000 tons of concrete, 3,000 tons of steel, and 40 tons of glass to build. The Buzludzha tower measures 70 m (230 ft) in height, 9 m (30 ft) across at the base, and 16 m (52 ft) across at its highest point. The tower's foundations descend 16 m (52 ft) into the ground. The glass stars on the north and south sides of the tower, believed to be the largest in the world – at 12 m (39 ft) across.
Construction could only take place between May and September due to the weather conditions and the monument was opened in 1981. The total price was 25 million levs which is the equivalent to roughly 62.5 million dollars today today.
From 1981 - 1989 the monument was open (and free) to everyone, but was so popular visits needed to be booked in advance. The architect claimed that the building could accommodate 500 people per hour, so this shows just how popular it was.
In 1989 Todor Zhivkov (communist leader of the People's Republic of Bulgaria 1954 - 1989) was deposed from office by his own party, and soon the whole single-party system of the Bulgarian Communist Party would be dismantled. The Buzludzha monument was closed. Around 1999 the monument was no longer guarded and was left on its own to the elements.
Today it is described as one of the world's most beautiful ruinsand there have been in roads made into securing the monument from further deca and vandalism and their is a movement in place to not only protect the monument from the elements but also to restore it for future use
Technical information in this write up was from please take a look to see the vision for Buzludzha
The architect Georgi Stoilov's idea was to create a monument that could become timeless, by incorporating both ancient and futuristic motifs into his design. He lists both the Roman Pantheon and the sci-fi films of the 1950s amongst his inspirations for Buzludzha.
Work began on the Buzludzha Monument on 23rd January 1974 and in total over 6,000 people contributed to the building including 500 soldiers and 14 artists for each mosaic panel, overall the monument took 70,000 tons of concrete, 3,000 tons of steel, and 40 tons of glass to build. The Buzludzha tower measures 70 m (230 ft) in height, 9 m (30 ft) across at the base, and 16 m (52 ft) across at its highest point. The tower's foundations descend 16 m (52 ft) into the ground. The glass stars on the north and south sides of the tower, believed to be the largest in the world – at 12 m (39 ft) across.
Construction could only take place between May and September due to the weather conditions and the monument was opened in 1981. The total price was 25 million levs which is the equivalent to roughly 62.5 million dollars today today.
From 1981 - 1989 the monument was open (and free) to everyone, but was so popular visits needed to be booked in advance. The architect claimed that the building could accommodate 500 people per hour, so this shows just how popular it was.
In 1989 Todor Zhivkov (communist leader of the People's Republic of Bulgaria 1954 - 1989) was deposed from office by his own party, and soon the whole single-party system of the Bulgarian Communist Party would be dismantled. The Buzludzha monument was closed. Around 1999 the monument was no longer guarded and was left on its own to the elements.
Today it is described as one of the world's most beautiful ruinsand there have been in roads made into securing the monument from further deca and vandalism and their is a movement in place to not only protect the monument from the elements but also to restore it for future use
Technical information in this write up was from please take a look to see the vision for Buzludzha
