Chicago Board of Trade Building, Art Deco high-rise building in Chicago Loop, United States
The Chicago Board of Trade Building is a skyscraper in the southern portion of the Loop that rises 604 feet with an aluminum figure of a goddess at its summit. Its stepped tower design and vertical pier patterns give it a distinctive appearance that stands out against the sky.
The current tower was completed in 1930 after the earlier trading house from the 19th century became too small. Over the following decades several additions were built that expanded the complex to the south.
The statue of Ceres carries no facial features because the architect believed no one could see them from street level anyway. Inside the entrance hall several murals celebrate the global trade of wheat and corn.
The main entrance is on Jackson Boulevard and leads into the two-story lobby with its bronze doors and polished stone walls. Visitors can enter the ground floor during office hours, though access to the upper floors is restricted to tenants and their guests.
On the ground floor a small public passageway offers pedestrians a shortcut through the block. The bronze details on the elevator doors show geometric patterns that recall grain fields and farm machinery.
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