Iconic cube to be rebuilt with fewer panes

New glass panels have arrived for the rebuilding of Apple's iconic glass cube at its Fifth Avenue store in New York City, TUAW reports with the help of photographer Justin Parmer. The original cube, which cost the company around $7 million to construct has been dismantled and will be replaced with a new one that follows a similar design but uses 15 much larger panes of glass rather than the 90 the previous cube required. A video showing the arrival of the glass is below.

The deconstruction and reconstruction of the cube will cost as much as the original construction, which quickly became a signature landmark for the city and was later partially replicated in Shanghai, China with a cylindrical glass artifice that utilized large panes of curved glass. The exact reason for the renovation of the NYC cube has never been made clear, but the new panes are exceedingly large and estimated to be about two inches thick.

The actual store itself, which is underground, has remained open during the entire process, and is one of Apple's few 24-hour stores. The company has released an official rendering of what the new cube will look like. Apple representatives have not said exactly when they expect the construction job, which also entails some renovating and structural work on the plaza, to be finished. [via TUAW; photos and video by Justin Parmer]

by MacNN Staff