The defining feature of San Francisco's skyline is this 1972 pyramid, built atop a whaling ship abandoned in the gold rush. Now history is repeating: the bank built atop the whaler folded and the pyramid sold to investors, banking on a new sky bar to attract visitors. Below the pyramid, a half-acre redwood grove sprouted from the ruins of Mark Twain's favorite saloon. Although redwoods have shallow roots, they intertwine to hold their ground and reach dizzying heights – a perfect metaphor for San Francisco.
Architect William Pereira's triangular structure allows light to reach the trees and narrow streets beneath the Pyramid. At first, critics claimed Pereira's Hollywood special-effects background was too obvious in his 853ft rocket-ship design. Today San Francisco would be unthinkable without the Pyramid – Godzilla respectfully left it intact in the 2014 remake of the Japanese sci-fi classic.
