This document discusses 8 classic metal roofs from history and their uses of metal. It provides brief descriptions of William Penn's house from the 1600s that had a slate roof; the 3rd century BC Lowa Maha Paya Temple in Sri Lanka that had a copper shingle roof; and Christ Church in Philadelphia from 1695 that had a copper roof added in 1727. It also mentions the Pantheon building from 27 BC that used copper for its famous dome roof and the 18th century Roswell mansion in Virginia that had a lead roof. Two additional churches are discussed - Temppeliaukio Church in Finland with a copper dome roof from 1969 and Hildesheim Cathedral in Germany with a copper roof installed

1. 8 CLASSIC METAL ROOFS
HI S TOR Y US E S ME TAL

2. 1. "THE SLATE ROOF HOUSE"
• "The Slate Roof House" refers to
William Penn's house built late
in the 1600s and remained
standing until 1867 when it was
demolished.
• The distinctive slate roof
housed Penn while he wrote
the “Charter of Privileges,” the
framework for Pennsylvania’s
government and model for
the United States Constitution.

3. 2. LOWA MAHA PAYA TEMPLE
• Lowa Maha Paya Temple is in Sri Lanka, though it
sported its copper shingle roof back in the 3rd
Century B.C.
• Old records say that the temple sat on 1,600 granite
pillars and stood 9 stories tall (270 feet high), which
was a difficult trek for some of the priests who lived
and worked there.

4. 3. CHRIST CHURCH
• Christ Church in Philadelphia is
known as “The Nation’s
Church.” It was built in 1695, but
the copper roof with standing
seams wasn’t added until 1727.
• It was the first parish of the
Church of England in
Pennsylvania and where the
American Episcopal Church
was born.

5. 4. THE PANTHEON
• The Pantheon today is known as one of the few
surviving buildings from the Roman age. The
Romans used copper as a roof covering for
the famous dome in 27 B.C

6. 5. ROSWELL MANSION
• A lead roof covered
"Rosewell," one of the
grandest mansions in 18th
century Virginia, which
stood from1725-1916. It
rivaled the governor’s
palace in size and luxury,
and was host to lavish balls
and parties
• The lead roof was
dismantled and sold after
the Civil war.

7. 6. TEMPPELIAUKIO CHURCH
• Built in Helsinki, Finland,
this church is carved into
rock and topped with a
copper dome roof.
• It was designed by
brothers Timo and Tuomo
Suomalainen, and
completed in 1969. It has
since been a famous
tourist destination, as well
as a church and music
hall.

8. 7. HILDESHEIM CATHEDRAL
• The copper roof of Hildesheim
Cathedral in Hildesheim,
Germany, was installed in1280
A.D.
• The cathedral was completely
destroyed during an air raid in
1945, and rebuilt from 1950 to
1960.
• After another round of
extensive conservation
measures, it reopened in
August 2014.

9. 8. NASSAU HALL
• Princeton's "Nassau Hall" was given a metal roof
after it was gutted by fire in 1802. It had previously
suffered damage during the American
Revolutionary War, especially during the Battle of
Princeton in 1777. In 1783, Nassau Hall housed the
entire American government.

10. FINE METAL ROOF TECH
• If you are interested in finding a copper roofing
company who can install copper dome roofing or
copper roofing shingles like some of these historical
buildings, check out Fine Metal Roof Tech.
• Contact Fine Metal Roof Tech today for a quote on
your metal roof installation.