22.2.07

F I R S TP R E V488NEXTLAST

Palace of Fine Arts at Night
Today, one of my favorite places in San Francisco, the Palace of Fine Arts. I used to live a block away from the Palace and would often spend Sunday mornings reading the newspaper on its lawn while watching couples pose for wedding photos in front of its lagoon, rotunda and curved colonnades.

Built in 1915 for the Panama-Pacific International Exposition, the three-acre Palace of Fine Arts was designed to look like an ancient Roman Ruin. But following the Exposition the Palace did indeed fall into ruin, serving as an Army motor pool, then a Parks Department warehouse, a telephone book distribution center; a flag and tent storage depot, and a temporary Fire Department headquarters. Today completely rebuilt, it houses the 1,000 seat Palace of Fine Arts Theatre and the Exploratorium, an exhibits-based science museum.
[ MAP E-10 ]


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