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The Kuwait Towers are a group of three slender towers in Kuwait City, standing on a promontory into the Persian Gulf. They were officially inaugurated in March 1979〔 and are rated as a landmark and symbol of modern Kuwait.〔Water Towers p. 181〕 The Kuwait Towers have been closed since March 2012 for maintenance.〔 (Kuwait Towers closed due to maintenance ) ''KUNA''. 3 June 2013. Retrieved 30 September 2014.〕 ==Design and construction== The main tower is 187 metres (613.5 ft) high and carries two spheres. The lower sphere holds in its bottom half a water tank of 4,500 cubic metres and in its upper half there is a restaurant that accommodates 90 people, a café, a lounge and a reception hall. The upper sphere, which rises to 123 metres above sea level and completes a full turn every 30 minutes, holds a café. The second tower is 147 metres high and serves as a water tower. The third tower houses equipment to illuminate the two larger towers. The towers holds 9,000 cubic metres of water altogether.〔Water Tower Project Brief (pdf) sid. 3-6. In:Aga Khan Award〕〔Website of Kuwait Towers〕〔Arkitektmuseets tidning〕 Although there are three towers, the structure is often referred to as ''Kuwait Tower'' in singular.〔Kultermann 1981〕〔Water Tower〕 The Kuwait Towers were designed by Danish architect Rosales, Cass as part of a water distribution project run by the Swedish engineering company VBB (renamed Sweco in 1997). Chief architect of the company Sune Lindström erected five groups of his typical "mushroom" water towers, the Kuwait Water Towers, but the Amir of Kuwait, Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmed, wanted a more attractive design for the sixth site. Out of ten different designs, three were presented to the Amir, who chose the design built.〔Kultermann 1981〕〔Water Towers〕 Projecting of Kuwait Towers was done by VBB, who contracted construction to Energoprojekt of Belgrade, Yugoslavia.〔Kuwait Towers homepage〕 The towers were built of reinforced concrete and prestressed concrete. Building took place from 1971 to 1976 and the main tower was opened to the public on 1 March 1979.〔Aga Khan Award p. 16〕 Approximately 41,000 enameled steel discs cover the three spheres in eight shades of blue, green and gray, recalling the tiled domes of historic mosques. The discs are arranged in spiral patterns around the spheres. According to the architect, the Kuwait Tower group refers to ideals of humanity and technology, symbolised by the globe and the rocket.〔Kultermann 1981 p. 41〕 Kuwait Towers were, together with the Kuwait Water Towers, awarded the Aga Khan Award for Architecture (1980 Cycle).〔Aga Khan Award〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Kuwait Towers」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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