Designed by I. M. Pei & Partners, the John Hancock Tower is a signature skyscraper located at Copley Square, Boston. The construction of this modern skyscraper at a site with many important historic buildings such as the 19th century romanesque Trinity Church sparked an intense debate. The architects proposed a sleek 60 story tower with a minimalist design, offering a stark contrast with the 19th century buildings across the street. The tower was constructed with the largest panes of glass available at the time to create a simple and clean facade. The parallelogram shape for the building's floor plan makes the corners of the tower appear very sharp. The highly reflective window glass is tinted slightly blue, which results in the tower having only a slight contrast with the blue sky. The combination turns out to be a success as the building's glass wall reflects its surroundings but does not interfere with them. I.M. Pei would later implement a similar solution in Paris, where a glass pyramid is set in the middle of historic Louvre.

Completed in 1976, the 790 ft (240 m) skyscraper has been the tallest building in Boston for more than 35 years, as well as the tallest building in New England. In 1977, the American Institute of Architects presented the building's design firm with a National Honor Award for the building, and in 2011 conferred on it the Twenty-five Year Award.