48°50′58″N2°18′22″E / 48.84944°N 2.30611°E /48.84944; 2.30611
UNESCO Headquarters, orMaison de l'UNESCO, is a building inaugurated on 3 November 1958 at number 7Place de Fontenoy inParis,France, to serve as the headquarters for the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). It is a building that can be visited freely.[1]
The design of the UNESCO Headquarters building was the combined work of three architects:Bernard Zehrfuss (France),Marcel Breuer (Hungary), andPier Luigi Nervi (Italy). Plans were also validated by an international committee of five architects composed ofLúcio Costa (Brazil),Walter Gropius (Germany/United States),Le Corbusier (France),Sven Markelius (Sweden) andErnesto Nathan Rogers (Italy), with the collaboration ofEero Saarinen (Finland).
The main building, which houses the secretariat, consists of seven floors forming a three-pointed star. To this is added a building called the "accordion" and a cubic building, which is intended for permanent delegations andnon-governmental organisations. These buildings occupy a trapezoidal area of land measuring 30,350 square metres (326,700 sq ft), cut in the northeast corner by the semi-circular shape of thePlace de Fontenoy. It is bordered by avenues of Saxony, Segur de Suffren and Lowendal.
The land on which the building is built is the property of the French State. By a decree of 22 December 1952, it was assigned to theForeign Ministry to put at the disposal of UNESCO.[2] This was done by a lease for a term of 99 years, renewable at a nominal rent (1000 francs per year), near the end of the lease. In addition, the residence of this intergovernmental organization on the French territory is governed by a headquarters agreement that defines its privileges and immunities. Both agreements were signed in Paris in 1954, respectively on 25 June and 25 July.[3][4]
The French Parliament approved the lease by a law enacted on 6 August 1955,[5] authorized the President of the Republic to ratify the Headquarters Agreement. The Headquarters Agreement entered into force on 23 November 1955. It was published by a decree of 11 January 1956.[6]
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