Monument "Bayterek"
The monument was built in 1997 as a symbol of the transfer of the capital from Almaty to Astana. The author of the monument project is the famous English architect Norman Foster. The height of the structure is 97 meters, with a ball crowning the structure — 105 meters. The diameter of the gilded ball is 22 meters. The lower level goes four and a half meters underground, where cafes, aquariums and the Baiterek mini gallery are located. From there, you can also take the elevator to the top level — the ball, inside which there is a bar and a panoramic hall.
"Baiterek", which means "poplar" in Kazakh, symbolizes the ideas of ancient nomads, through which the World River flows at the junction of the worlds.
On its shore stands the Tree of Life — "Baiterek", which holds the earth with its roots and supports the sky with its crown. The roots of this tree, respectively, are in the underworld, the tree itself, its trunk is earthly, and the crown is in the heavenly. Every year, in the crown of the Tree, the sacred bird Samruk lays an egg — the Sun, which is swallowed by the dragon Aidakhar, who lives at the foot of the tree of life, which symbolically means the change of summer and winter, day and night, the struggle of Good and Evil. "Bayterek" means a young, strong, growing tree, symbolizes a state that has preserved its historical roots, has a strong support and aspiration for future prosperity.