IG Farben Building

Frankfurt, Germany

Exterior only

Visible from the street; the inside is private.

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The IG Farben Building in Frankfurt, Germany, is a modernist office complex designed by Hans Poelzig in the New Objectivity style, constructed between 1928 and 1930 as the corporate headquarters of I.G. Farben, then the world's largest chemical company. Built of Cannstatt travertine and standing 35 meters high, the structure's six square wings—which earned it the nickname "Pentagon of Europe"—made it Europe's largest office building upon completion, a distinction it retained until the 1950s. During World War II, it served as headquarters for production and research into dyes, pharmaceuticals, explosives, and synthetic materials. After the war, the building became the seat of the Supreme Allied Command and later the High Commissioner for Germany, hosting Dwight D. Eisenhower's office and serving as the principal location for implementing the Marshall Plan. The 1948 Frankfurt Documents, which established the framework for West Germany, were signed here. The building remained home to the U.S. Army's V Corps until 1995 and now forms the main structure of the University of Frankfurt's Westend Campus, retaining its status as a cultural heritage monument in Hesse.