The Tallest Twin Buildings on Earth (see Times Special)

Kuala Lumpur's iconic Petronas Twin Towers were designed by an Argentine and built by Japanese and Korean contractors, but the structures are staunchly rooted in Malaysian culture. The towers borrow from the Islamic tradition, Malaysia's national religion, in their orderly repetition of steel and glass on the buildings' facade; the crowning spires atop hearken back to the minarets that adorn mosques the world over. The towers, which opened in 1998, held the title of world's tallest buildings until the completion of Taipei 101 in 2004. Named for the state-owned gas company Petronas, which inhabits Tower 1, both towers stretch 1,483 ft. (452 m) into the sky. But the towers do not merely stand aside each other; like many of their twinned brethren, a sky bridge connects the two towers halfway up the buildings. But despite their magnificent design, the height is somewhat deceiving. The buildings only have 88 floors, quite paltry given their height. That's because the Petronas Towers' listed height is padded by the 241-ft. (74 m) spires that adorn their tops.