More than 5000 engineers worked on the building , with up to 2000 on site at one time during the peak building phase.[1] More than 1,000 iron columns supported 2,224 giant steel beams, comprising 4,000 tons of iron in all.[2] The building was complete and ready to receive exhibits in just five months.[3] Since it was almost entirely covered in glass, it did not need any lighting. The one who built it, Paxton, was knighted by Queen Victoria. The 900,000 square feet (84,000 m2) of glass was provided by the Chance Brothers glassworks in Smethwick. They were the only glassworks who could make such a large order and had to bring in labor from France to meet it in time. The final dimensions were 1,848 feet (563 m) long by 456 feet (139 m) wide. The building was 135 feet (41 m) high, with 772,784 square feet (71,794.0 m2) on the ground floor alone.[4]
[1] For the peak figure of 2,000 workers daily see: Hermione Hobhouse. (2002). The Crystal Palace and the Great Exhibition. London: Athlone. p. 34. ISBN 0-485-11575-1. and the University of Virginia's "Modeling the Crystal Palace". 2001. project: "The Crystal Palace Animation Exterior and Interior". Retrieved 20 November 2007.
[2] "Sketch for the Crystal Palace".
[3] Jeremy Walker. "History of the Crystal Palace (part 1)".
[4] Hunt, Lynn, Thomas R. Martin, and Barbara H. Rosenwein. The Making of the West: Peoples and Cultures. Boston/New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2009. P 685.
[2] "Sketch for the Crystal Palace".
[3] Jeremy Walker. "History of the Crystal Palace (part 1)".
[4] Hunt, Lynn, Thomas R. Martin, and Barbara H. Rosenwein. The Making of the West: Peoples and Cultures. Boston/New York: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2009. P 685.