The connection detail between the elements of the sydney opera house roof was a complex design challenge.
Sydney opera house roof tiles.
The nature of this challenge was to ensurethe watertightness of the joints between the various components thatformed the roof system.
The roof of the sydney opera house has a whopping 1 056 000 glazed white granite tiles that have been imported from sweden.
Seven a380s could sit wing to wing on the site.
The tiles used in the sydney opera house construction are 120mm square.
They were made in sweden.
Principal curator matthew connell explores the ideas behind the creation of sydney s most famous building.
Like all tiles the tiles on the opera house which have come to be known as the sydney tile are made of fired clay.
The sydney opera house s glistening roof is achieved through the use of 1 056 006 roof tiles.
The tiles supporting lidswith their fixing brackets.
Even today they are known as the sydney tile.
Sydney opera house was opened by queen elizabeth ii on 20th october 1973.
Despite their self cleaning nature they are still subject to maintenance and replacement.
And the finishing tiles.
The structural rib segments.
Though they are meant to be self cleaning in nature they still require maintenance replacement.
Its interior is composed of pink granite mined from tarana nsw and white birch and brush box plywood supplied from northern nsw.
As construction of the podium began in sydney jørn utzon and his team of architects back in hallebaek explored how to build the opera house s shell shaped roof.
Glossy off white tiles make up the majority of the tiles used whilst matt bone color tiles are used at edges of tiles panels or at the edges of the shells picture 1 shows this well.
The impressive and subtle chevron pattern has glossy white matte cream coloured tiles manufactured by höganäs ab.
Sydney opera house model.
What s more you can buy them to use at home.
This is an extract from the publication icons which can be purchased online.
For such an enormous construction the tiles are not particularly large around 120 mm square.
Between 1958 and 1962 the roof design for the sydney opera house evolved through various iterations as utzon and his team pursued parabolic ellipsoid and finally spherical geometry to derive the final form of the shells.
