View from the roof - Perlan in the Autumn Sun
Perlan was designed by architect Ingimundur Sveinsson and opened to the public on 21 June 1991.
The building is composed of an immense glass dome that sits on six hot-water tanks, each carrying 4 million litres of geothermal hot water. All of this is supported by a colossal steel frame, which serves important functions in addition to holding everything together. The framework, hollow on the inside, is actually a gigantic radiator. In the winter when it is cold, hot water runs through the frame, while cold water is used in the summertime.
Kjarval’s Temple of Dreams
In 1930, one of Iceland’s most important artists, painter Jóhannes Kjarval described his vision for a magnificent building to grace the top of Öskjuhlíð Hill:
“The sides of the temple should be laid with mirrors, so the northern lights could approach the feet of men – the roof should be decorated with crystals in the colours of the rainbow, and a beam of light should be on the ridge to shine in all directions. The building itself should reflect the light of day and the signs of the night,” he said.
Sixty years later, Icelanders finally designed and constructed a building befitting this spectacular location:
Perlan became the crowning jewel of Öskjuhlíð Hill.
In the heart of Reykjavik, Öskjuhlíð Hill rises 61 metres above sea level, and is covered with more than 176,000 trees. Citizens and tourists alike increasingly seek out the peace and beauty of this small, urban woodland park.
The hill still bears scars from its distinctive geological history:
More than 10,000 years ago the ground sank beneath a thick sheet of flowing ice.
Glaciers dug long, deep scratches (known as glacial striations) through the stone, which remain today.
At the end of the Ice Age, melting glaciers raised sea levels, turning Öskjuhlíð Hill into an island.
Today, ocean-smoothed rocks dot the hill 43 metres above current sea level.
The first hot-water tank was constructed in 1939 on Öskjuhlíð Hill, 61 metres above sea level. That height gives enough pressure to push water up to the 10th storey of a tall building, 38 metres above sea level.
Indeed, that is the exact height of Skólavörðuholt Hillock, where Hallgrímskirkja Church stands.
Today, Icelanders not only see it as normal to draw hot water from geothermal wells deep within the Earth:
they find it absolutely essential.
Iceland 2019
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