Helsinki Central Railway Station - Helsinki, Finland
N 60° 10.260 E 024° 56.488
35V E 385785 N 6672235
The Helsinki Central Railway Station in downtown Helsinki, Finland, is of the Art Nouveau or Jugend architectural style.
Waymark Code: WMPFWY
Location: Finland
Date Posted: 08/25/2015
Views: 83
"The main figures of Art Nouveau in Finland included Eliel Saarinen, Hermann Gesellius, Armas Lindgren, Lars Sonck and Ernst Jung. The Helsinki Central railway station, designed by Saarinen, which opened in 1919, is an outstanding example of the Art Nouveau style."
--Source (
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"The station building was designed by Eliel Saarinen and inaugurated in 1919. It was chosen as one of the world's most beautiful railway stations by BBC in 2013.
Features
The station is mostly clad in Finnish granite, and its distinguishing features are its clock tower and the two pairs of statues holding the spherical lamps, lit at night-time, on either side of the main entrance. Animated characters based on the statues have recently been featured in some major advertising campaigns by Finland's government-owned railway operator VR, to the extent of releasing rap singles allegedly sung by Kivimiehet ("The stone men").
History
The first railway station in Helsinki was built in 1860, as Finland's first railway between Helsinki and Hämeenlinna was opened. The station's plans were drawn by the Swedish architect Carl Albert Edelfelt. However, as the popularity of railways grew, the station turned out to be too small, and a contest was organised in 1904 with the intention of producing plans for a new station. The contest received 21 entries, and was won by Eliel Saarinen, with a pure national romanticist design, which sparked off a vigorous debate about the architecture of major public buildings, with demands for a modern, rational style. Saarinen himself abandoned romanticism altogether and re-designed the station completely. The new design was finished in 1909 and the station was opened in 1919."
--Wikipedia (
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