A Boston Architectural Icon Turns 30

Despite a rocky start, the 30 years old John Hancock Tower has become Boston's greatest example of modern architecture.

1 minute read

September 27, 2006, 6:00 AM PDT

"It is all grown up now. Aloof yet alluring. Tall and graceful. An icon, forever blue, at the dawn of middle age.

The John Hancock tower turns 30 this week. Looming 60 stories over the Back Bay, it was once assailed as a skyline monster, an ill-mannered interloper in buttoned-down Copley Square.

Today, the city that checks its reflection in the tower's signature skin has largely dismissed its ugly past as an amusing piece of local lore, like the Bambino's curse or Curley's chicanery at City Hall. Few can summon an image of Boston without it -- or would want to."

FULL STORY: The Hancock Tower at 30: Behind the Looking Glass

Monday, September 25, 2006 in The Boston Globe

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