The other day when I was in KL, I noticed that a lot of the high-rise buildings have a needle-like structure added to the top. Was there a very functional purpose for it? I mean, it didn't seem to add much beauty to the overall aesthetics of the buildings. (Modern high-rises have become increasingly bland.) So I did a bit of research — turns out I was not entirely wrong.
See what I mean? While the most iconic buildings (like the Petronas Towers) have an effect on us where we accepted the spire (the pinnacle's actual name) beautifying them, it still leaves a big question as to why they are even there. And to know why, we have to go a bit back in time.
In the 12th Century, the spire made its first appearance on top of a church, and many other cathedrals followed suit; spires were added on different ways, such as grouping them or even place them on domes.
These spires were typically octagonal but more needle-like ones (like the ones today) took their place during the 14th Century, when the Renaissance Period was at its peak.
A key event that further simplified the spires’ designs was the Great Fire of London, in 1666. After this disaster, Sir Christopher Wren redesigned spires to be simplistic.
In the previous century, however, it was also not surprising to see spires being used as lightning rods that helped buildings withstand lightning storms.
But I’m sure you have a fair understanding of the real purpose of the spire: that’s right, it is to increase the height of buildings.
As explained earlier, the designs of these pinnacle are relatively less complex – and cheap! And with the ever-present competition to be the best, we humans have creatively used them to add hundreds of metres to the tallest buildings in the world!
The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH for short) said:
Nearly 60% of the world's tallest buildings, called supertalls, actually wouldn't be supertalls without added vanity height, such as spires.
Generally, this vanity height refers to the height above the highest occupied floor. That said, Burj Khalifa (the world’s current tallest building) would still be the tallest without its vanity height (approximately 29% of the total height). Comparatively, the building with the most vanity height is Burj al Arab with an unbelievable 39% of vanity height.
Below shows a better visualisation of supertalls and their vanity heights.
With a pressing need for sustainable buildings that must be as functional as possible, vanity height mustn’t be a priority for designers.
Of course, I shouldn’t disregard the fact that buildings have to only be functional… They can also be a treat for the eye. And that is what makes all these supertalls excusable: their design and grandeur attract people from all over the world. What’s a better way to do this than to be the tallest in the world?
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