http://voices.yahoo.com/the-chrysler-building-famous-art-deco-architecture-2818135.

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At 405 Lexington Avenue and 42nd Street in New York City, one of the most famous, most recognizable buildings in the world stands proud for nearly 80 years. The 80 year anniversary of the Chrysler building is coming next year in 2010 - what better way to celebrate than to take a look into the history of the Chrysler Building and its true origins. Very few people know that the Chrysler building originally started out as a small scale office building and quickly transformed into the famous Art Deco architecture it is today. Construction began during 1928 and by the time construction had finished in 1930, Chrysler purchased the site and hired William Van Alen to redesign the office building and create the tallest building in the world. Property of Chrysler, of course. It was constructed using large amounts of grey and black brick (an estimated 3,826,000 bricks) as well as stainless steel and copper. In addition to the building materials, there are also 3,800 windows. The gargoyles were created with the use of hubcaps, car fenders, radiator caps and of course, the Chrysler hood ornament. Eagles (the original hood ornament of the 1929 Chrysler) were featured on the 61st floor. Additional replicas of the 1929 Chrysler radiator caps adorned the 31st floor. Meanwhile, the 186 foot Art Deco styled spire of the Chrysler building was added on as a last minute detail due to competition of another contender for 'world's tallest building.' The spire is one of the most famous pieces of Art Deco architecture and it is also part of one of the most famous, most easily recognized buildings in New York City. At 77 stories high, the Chrysler building was the first building to surpass the 1,000 foot mark in height, standing at just over 1,046 feet. It was also the first building to surpass the height of the Eiffel Tower (which was considered the tallest, man-made structure in existence at the time.) Of course, there's more luxurious Art Deco detailing on the interior of the building. The interior features several Egyptian styled motifs, Moroccan Red Marble walls, blue marble accents as well as gorgeous flooring. The original ceiling murals were painted by Edward Trumbull, who was instructed to create scenes from the assembly line of Chrysler as well as various buildings and airplanes. Currently the Chrysler Building is owned by the Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company and it does not house any public broadcasting companies at the top of the spire (as it had in the

1940s and 1950s.) It is a true representation of the determination of America to strive for greatness as well as a National Historic Landmark. Sources: Kevin Matthews; "Chrysler Building" NYC-Architecture.com; "Chrysler Building"
Published by Jenne Joy
Jenne Joy launched her writing career through Associated Content in August of 2008. Since then, her articles have been picked up by several reputable online publications including USA Today and the New York... View profile