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Summary

Description

John Burnet, 1874-8, 3-storey and basement office building,

raised by J J Burnet 1907-8, by 2 storeys and an attic.

Sculpture by Young. Cream ashlar sandstone; base course,

channelled and vermiculated bands alternating at ground and

on quoins; ground floor cornice, guilloche cill course at 2nd

floor and mutule cornice with grouped brackets to original

eaves above 2nd floor; Burnet Son's additional storeys with

Giant attached columns on panelled dies and further mutule

cornice on paired brackets; urn finials above.

GEORGE SQUARE ELEVATION: 8-bay; broken and open cartouched

segmental pediment over Ionic doorpiece with moulded fanlight

in 2nd bay from left. Round-arched windows with masqued

keystones in ground, raised basement openings and decorative

railings. Architraved windows at 1st and 2nd floor, those at

1st with consoled, segmental shell pediments and balustraded

balconies. Bold keystones to 3rd floor architraved windows;

outer left bay broken segmental pediment over 4th floor.

CORNER BAYS: symmetrical, with ground floor windows detailed

as above and bowed 1st floor oriel supported by flying

caryatids, with Ionic mullions and blind balconies; fish-scale

carving to stone cupolas; tripartite 2nd floor windows,

bipartite 3rd floor and balconied 4th floor windows; single

light window under broad segmental pediment breaking eaves;

above, plinth supports drum tower with domed roof and gilded

sphere and ship finial.

WEST GEORGE STREET ELEVATION: 5 symmetrical bays more elaborate

at 1st floor. Tripartite doorway at centre with Ionic columns; round-arched bipartites flanking with masqued keystones; 3 1st

floor bipartites to centre bays with broken and open segmental

consoled pediments, with cartouches and symbolic figures.

Outer bays with bowed oriels detailed as above (left being

corner bay); bipartites to centre 3 bays at 2nd floor,

tripartites in outer bays. Giant attached columns to J J

Burnet upper storeys, and outer bays breaking eaves in

segmental panels with balconies at 4th floor.

ANCHOR LANE ELEVATION: 2 ashlar bays detailed similarly to

George Street elevation, to left, without the attached columns

of later storeys. Simpler ashlar bays to right.

Plate glass sash and case windows; slate mansard with timber

dormer windows.

INTERIOR: marble lined staircases to E and N; stained glass

stair window by W and J J Kier, 1877-8, and panel in W door,

circa 1913; open timber roof by J J Burnet in Hall, circa

1913-14. Some furnishings imported from former Merchants'

Hall in the Bridgegate and later Hall in the County Buildings,

Wilson Street.

Statement of Special Interest

The scheme established by J T Rochead for the W side of George

Square (by his design of 2 St Vincent Place), was followed

in part by the original Burnet design of the Merchants House,

but rendered notably asymmetrical by the tower pavilion.

J J Burnet's work forms top hamper addition; a treatment

adopted in a number of central Glasgow buildings.

References

Bibliography

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