The Palace of Culture and Science (Polish: Pałac Kultury i Nauki;[a] abbreviated PKiN)[b] is a notable high-rise building in central Warsaw, Poland.

[2] Motivated by Polish historical architecture and American art deco high-rise buildings, the Palace of Culture and Science was designed by Soviet-Russian architect Lev Rudnev in "Seven Sisters" style.

[3] The Palace houses various public and cultural institutions such as theatres, cinemas, libraries, university faculties and authorities of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

A number of nicknames have been used to refer to the palace, notably Pekin ("Beijing", because of its abbreviated name PKiN), Pajac ("clown", a word that sounds close to Pałac),[6] and the "Drunk Confectioner's Nightmarish Dream" (koszmarny sen pijanego cukiernika), attributed to poet Władysław Broniewski.

[14] To decide on the height of the building, Soviet and Polish architects gathered in the area of the Śląsko-Dąbrowski Bridge on the east bank of the Vistula river.

The Poles, led by the plenipotentiary for the construction of the building and chief architect of Warsaw, Józef Sigalin, began to shout "Higher!"

[16] The builders were housed at a new suburban complex built at Poland's expense, with its own cinema, food court, community centre and swimming pool, called Osiedle "Przyjaźni" (Neighborhood of Friendship).

[16] The monumental walls are headed with pieces of masonry copied from Renaissance houses and palaces of Kraków and Zamość.

[18] Shortly after opening, many visiting dignitaries toured the Palace, and the building hosted the 5th World Festival of Youth and Students, held from July to August 1955.

The Palace hosted performances by notable international artists, such as a 1967 concert by The Rolling Stones, the first by a major western rock group behind the Iron Curtain.

Analogue television transmissions, which used the Eastern Bloc SECAM standard until 1994 when the country changed over to PAL, were shut down from RTCN Warszawa (PKiN) on 19 March 2013.

In 2017, due to the maintenance works on the spire of the building, the falcons were moved to the highest floor of the Warsaw Trade Tower skyscraper.

[37] Porozumienie Organizacji Kombatanckich i Niepodległościowych w Krakowie,[38] a coalition of veteran and nationalist groups, as well as Law and Justice (PiS) have called for its demolition.

[40] Other prominent government leaders have continued to endorse demolition plans, including former Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.