Chennai architecture is a confluence of many architectural styles. From ancient Tamil temples built by the Pallavas, to the Indo-Saracenic style (pioneered in Madras) of the colonial era, to 20th-century steel and chrome of skyscrapers. Chennai has a colonial core in the port area, surrounded by progressively newer areas as one travels away from the port, punctuated with old temples, churches and mosques. As of 2014, Chennai city, within its corporation limits covering 426 sq km, has about 625,000 buildings, of which about 35,000 are multi-storied (with four and more floors). Of these, nearly 19,000 are designated as commercial ones. Brief history The European architectural styles, such as Neo-Classical, Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance, were brought to India by European colonists. Chennai, being the first major British settlement in the Indian subcontinent, witnessed several of the earliest constructions built in these styles. The initial structures were utilitarian warehouses and walled trading posts, giving way to fortified towns along the coastline. Although several European colonists, namely, Portuguese, Danish and French, initially influenced the architectural style of the region, it was chiefly the British who left a lasting impact on the city's architecture succeeding the Mughals in the country. They followed various architectural styles, with Gothic, Imperial, Christian, English Renaissance and Victorian being the essentials. Starting with factories, several types of buildings such as courts, educational institutions, municipal halls, and dak bungalows were built, most of which were ordinary structures built by garrison engineers. Churches and other public buildings displayed a more nuanced architecture. Most of the buildings were adaptations of the buildings designed by leading British architects of that time like Wren, Adam, Nash and others in London and other places. For instance, the Pachaiyappa's Hall in Chennai was modelled on the Athenium Temple of Theseus. Unlike Europe, these buildings were built mostly of brick and stuccoed with lime, with "facades" sometimes incised to resemble stones. Some later buildings, however, were built with stones. Several churches were built based on London prototypes, with variations as highly original works. The earliest example is the St. Mary's Church in Fort St. George. The transfer of power to the British Crown from the English East India Company, the rise of Indian nationalism and the introduction of railways marked several milestones in the history of British Colonial Indian architecture. New materials like concrete, glass, wrought and cast iron were being increasingly used in construction, which opened