The Palace of Culture and Science (; abbreviated PKiN) is a notable high-rise building in central Warsaw, Poland. With a total height of it is the second tallest building in both Warsaw and Poland after Varso, the 6th-tallest building in the European Union (including spire) and one of the tallest on the European continent. Constructed in 1955, it houses various public and cultural institutions such as cinemas, theatres, libraries, sports clubs, university faculties, and authorities of the Polish Academy of Sciences. Since 2007, it has been enlisted in the Registry of Objects of Cultural Heritage. Motivated by Polish historical architecture and American art deco high-rise buildings, the PKiN was designed by Soviet-Russian architect Lev Rudnev in "Seven Sisters" style and is informally referred to as the Eighth Sister. The Palace was also the tallest clock tower in the world until the installation of a clock mechanism on the NTT Docomo Yoyogi Building in Tokyo, Japan. History Name The building was originally known as the Joseph Stalin's Palace of Culture and Science (Pałac Kultury i Nauki imienia Józefa Stalina), but in the wake of destalinization the dedication to Stalin was revoked. Stalin's name was removed from the colonnade, interior lobby and one of the building's sculptures. Construction Construction started in 1952 and lasted until 1955 during the Soviet occupation of Poland as an imposed and unwanted "gift" to the people of Poland. As one commentator describes it, the Palace "was a "gift of the Soviet peoples to People's Poland" that Warsaw could not refuse. It was erected with great propagandistic fanfare and named after Joseph Stalin upon its completion in 1955." The tower was constructed, using Soviet plans, by 3,500 to 5,000 Soviet workers and 4,000 Polish workers. Sixteen workers died in accidents during the construction. The builders were housed at a new suburban complex built at Poland's expense, with its own cinema, food court, community centre and swimming pool, called Osiedle "Przyjaźni" (Neighborhood of Friendship). The architecture of the building is closely related to several similar skyscrapers built in the Soviet Union of the same era, most notably the Main building of Moscow State University and the Latvian Academy of Sciences building in Riga, Latvia, which was also imposed on Latvia while it was occupied by the Soviets. However, the main architect Lev Rudnev incorporated some Polish architectural details into the project after travelling around Poland and seeing the architecture.