Description

LEADENHALL STREET
TQ 3381
11/402 Nos 147 and 148

II

Bank and offices. 1927 by J W O'Connor (an American architect) for Grace & Co, a
New York family owned banking firm. Portland stone. 4 storeys, mezzanine floor,
attic and basement. 3 windows. Ground floor enriched with serlian motif, the arch extending into mezzanine floor. Central pedimented entrance with enriched doorcase and panelled doors leading into banking hall. To left, entrance to offices with enriched panel over, overlight and panelled doors; to right recessed sash with enriched panel over and semi-basement opening with bronze grill of geometric pattern. Mezzanine floor with sashes flanking central arch with radial pattern fanlight. Recessed sashes with original hardwood frames and glazing bars; 1st floor architraved with cornices and sill band. Vertical ventilation slits beneath each sash with bronze grills. Doric cornice with enriched Metopes. Parapet with enriched panels. Interior retains all the principal spaces largely intact with decoration in quality materials. Lobby with Adam style detail and bronze screen of geometric pattern leading into large opulent banking hall with fluted Ionic columns supporting cornice enriched with winged beasts and paterea; deeply coffered ceiling. Dog-leg stair of concrete clad with cream marble; thin iron balusters of alternating round and square plan, newels of baluster type enriched with acanthus leaves, and hardwood wreathed handrail. Panelled Board Room with Adam style decoration including fireplace and, to left, a niche with shell head and shelves. A range of walnut and oak panelled 3rd floor offices in different styles with stone fireplaces served by a classically enriched corridor. A rare survival in the City of a building of this period with large, opulent spaces.

Listing NGR: TQ3310581159

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q27082404

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Historic Environment Law: Planning, Listed Buildings, Monuments, Conservation Areas and Objects by Harwood, Richard (2012) Paperback
• 
  Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair
• 
  Yorkshire: York and the East Riding (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  England's Post-War Listed Buildings
• 
  London 3: North West: North West v. 3 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Old House Eco Handbook: A Practical Guide to Retrofitting for Energy-Efficiency & Sustainability