Description

Alexander Johnston, 1877. 4-storey and attic, Renaissance-detailed commercial building on large gusset site with consistent treatment on all 3 elevations. Cream sandstone ashlar, slate mansard roof. Shopfronts to Murraygate and Seagate mostly original, exposed cast-iron columns with composite-type capitals, mezzanine at Seagate, dentilled cornice; cill course to 1st and 2nd floors, giant banded pilasters rising to drop-corbelled main cornice at 2nd floor, paired pilasters above rising to corniced balustraded parapet with dies and urn finials (balustrade removed from 8 right hand bays at Commercial Street, and Seagate). 2 moulded round-headed doorpieces at Commercial Street with

mask keystones, astragalled fanlights and banded Doric pilasters.

Single architraved windows, some paired: aprons, alternate segmental and triangular consoled pediments to 1st floor; keystoned and segmental-headed to 2nd floor with continuous hood moulds; segmental-headed to 3rd floor; round-headed dormers. Stained glass panels to public house at ground floor angle of Commercial Street and Seagate. Corniced axial stacks.

COMMERCIAL STREET ELEVATION: 16 bays arranged in symmetrical 8-bay sections, 3-bay curved angles to left and right. 8-bay sections; door to centre flanked by 4-bay shopfronts, 2 centre bays slightly advanced at upper floors with bipartite window to 1st, paired windows to 2nd and 3rd floors, 3 windows to left and right at all floors, 5 dormers (4 to 8-bay section at right). Curved angles; 3-bay shopfronts to ground,

3 windows to upper floors, voluted aediculaed window breaking through parapet, octagonal domed roof to angle at right with pedimented oval windows at drum, lucarne dormers, fishscale slates, pedimented apex with single central stack.

MURRAYGATE ELEVATION: modern shopfront to ground floor, tripartite window flanked by single windows to upper floors, 3 dormers.

SEAGATE ELEVATION: 11-bay shopfront including 2 doors to ground floor, upper floors as 8-bay section at Commercial Street.

INTERIOR: not seen.

Statement of Interest

Although the elevations are Johnston's own, the building as a whole pays lip service to William Mackison's 1871 Improvement Act designs, such as 73-99 Commercial Street, also listed.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata IDs Q17575416 Q60846449

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.

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  [(Cumberland and Westmorland)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1967)