What’s in a Spire?

I saw this entertaining post by Adam Clark Estes that asked the question: “Should a Skyscraper's Spire Count Towards Its Total Height?” The background to this was the height of the Freedom Tower being built by the US in memory of 9/11. Its height would be 1,776-feet, if spire height is included (in case you didn’t notice, that particular number, 1776, is the year the US got its independence).

But are towers using spires to just bloat their heights, all over the world?
“Spires make up an average of 30 percent of the tallest skyscrapers' heights.”
The 30% group includes the Burj Khalifa, Zifeng Tower, and the Bank of America Tower among many, many others.

One reader, UniversalCode, commented on that article:

“Question: How tall is Marge Simpson? Would she be the same person without the hair?”

To which another reader, Etchasketchist, responded with this pic:

I guess, sometimes spires can indeed fit into the building’s architecture!

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