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MOSCOW is poised to take a giant leap back to the future with the construction of an addition to the seven famous Stalinist monoliths that dominate the city skyline.
Ten years ago these gigantic triumphalist structures - nicknamed Wedding Cakes because of their layered appearance - were seen as hated symbols of communism.
But with the failure of democracy to deliver prosperity, Russians are nostalgic for their communist past - and a new monolith has hit the spot.
Hence the queues of rich Muscovites already snapping up the unbuilt apartments for Triumph Palace, a 40-storey concrete pile complete with Soviet-style spire sticking up from the top being build in the city centre.
"This will not be just a copy," said spokesman for the developers, Don Stroi. "It will use some of the best technologies of construction."
Moscow is dominated by the so-called Seven Sisters, gargantuan concrete buildings thrown together following a 1948 decree by Stalin. They...