Bayterek (Kazakh: Бəйтерек, "tall poplar [tree]"), is a monument and observation tower in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. A tourist attaction popular with foreign visitors and native Kazakhstanis alike, it is a common symbol of the city and itself in turn symbolizes Astana's new status as the capital of Kazakhstan.
Designed by the distinguished British architect Sir Norman Foster, the monument is meant to embody a folktale about a mythical tree of life and a magic bird of happiness: the bird, named Samruk, had laid its egg in the crevice between two branches of a poplar tree. The 105m structure consists of a narrow cyllindrical shaft emeshed in flaring white branch-like girders, widening toward the top (the "tree"), where a gold-mirrored 22m-diameter sphere (the "egg") containing the obsevation deck is supported.
The altitude of the deck is 97m, symbolizing the year of the capital-transfer to Astana (1997). From its height it is possible to see much of the newly built city. The viewing platform features a gilded hand print (Alakan) of the right hand of Nursultan Nazarbayev, the first President of the independent Republic of Kazakhstan. An accompanying plaque suggests that visitors place their own hand in the imprint and make a wish; when one does so the Kazakh national anthem plays. In addition to the observation platform, the tower contains a large aquarium and an art gallery.
In the summer of 2006, the top floors of the tower were damaged by fire, causing it to be nicknamed "the ashtray."
