China is home to all sorts of quirky apartment buildings, from giant, hive-like structures capable of housing around 20,000 people, to buildings that trains pass straight through, or buildings located in the middle of busy overpasses. But did you know that it’s also home to a pyramid-shaped apartment building?
Located in Kunshan’s trendy Huaqiao district, the commonly known Pyramid of Kunshan is one of the most famous apartment buildings in China. It was completed in 2013 and has since become one of the Chinese city’s most popular tourist attractions.
Unlike true pyramids, the 18-storey Pyramid of Kunshan has two vertical exterior walls, but the other two are slanted, with apartments cascading at a 45-degree angle and creating an impressive visual effect. Masters’ Architectural Office, the architecture firm behind the project, was reportedly inspired by traditional Chinese terraced rice fields when designing the building.
Although the building’s unique design means that each apartment on the cascading side comes with a big terrace, the building as a whole faces several practical challenges. The unique shape of the Pyramid creates challenges in ventilation and lighting the interior spaces, while the complicated design also impacts fire safety.
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