Lego Architecture 21039 Shanghai (Шанхай) [7/160] Building history

BUILDING HISTORY English

Built in 1927 on the site of a traditional Chinese-style

customs house, the building cost 4.3 million taels of silver

to construct and still functions as a customs house today.

The eastern section is eight stories tall, faces the Huangpu

River and is topped by a 300 ft. (90 m) clock tower. The

clock tower oﬀers views over the entire Bund and Shanghai

city center. The clock and bell itself were built in England

and are an imitation of Big Ben.

This six-ﬂoor, neo-classical style building was designed by

a British architecture ﬁrm and completed in 1923. At the

time, it was called “the most luxurious building between

the Suez Canal and the Bering Strait”. Its central dome

was famously decorated with frescos depicting the twelve

signs of the zodiac. It served as the HSBC headquarters

until 1955, when it then became known as the Municipal

Government Building. Today the building houses the

Shanghai Pudong Development Bank.

HSBC BuildingNoTheBund Customs HouseNoTheBund