The building on the right, at the west corner of Huntly Street, is 208-210 Union Street. This ornate building, which extends 100 feet along Huntly Street, was built for the Royal Insurance Company between 1910 and 1911 to an Italian Renaissance design by architect George Bennett Mitchell (1865-1941).

The original house that stood on the site was demolished in the summer of 1910 to make way for this building. Diane Morgan in The Granite Mile (2008) states that it cost £20,000 to construct and describes the style as that of a "magnificent Venetian palazzo" (p. 136).

Detail of the exterior and interior of the building can be read in the Aberdeen Daily Journal within articles on the plans for the construction being approved (ADJ, 20/05/1910 p. 4), a preview on the day of its opening (ADJ, 08/06/1911 p. 6) and a report on a celebratory luncheon that took place at the Palace Hotel the following day (ADJ, 09/06/1911 p. 5).

The latter article states that 3,514 blocks of dressed white Kemnay granite were provided for the building from the yard of John Fyfe, Ltd.

Historic Environment Scotland's listed building information highlights a number of the building's significant architectural features. The arched, cavetto moulded and keystoned ground floor main entrance. The cornice over the ground floor. The giant four Ionic engaged columns framing the angle and neighbouring bays with pedimented windows on the first floor. The pilasters flanking the outer bays with all remaining windows keystoned.

Above the columns is the entablature with its prominent cornice. Scrolled brackets support an octagonal cupola with Ionic order framing arched openings, supporting the granite dome and finial.

Morgan states that after the Royal Insurance left, the building stood empty for some time but was eventually handsomely restored. Since 2001 the ground floor has been occupied by a Starbucks coffee shop, which remains the case in this 2024 image.

A photograph by Roddy Millar, taken 24/07/2024, from a series surveying the architecture of the north side of Union Street.

The building on the right, at the west corner of Huntly Street, is 208-210 Union Street. This ornate building, which extends 100 feet along Huntly Street, was built for the Royal Insurance Company between 1910 and 1911 to an Italian Renaissance design by architect George Bennett Mitchell (1865-1941).

The original house that stood on the site was demolished in the summer of 1910 to make way for this building. Diane Morgan in The Granite Mile (2008) states that it cost £20,000 to construct and describes the style as that of a "magnificent Venetian palazzo" (p. 136).

Detail of the exterior and interior of the building can be read in the Aberdeen Daily Journal within articles on the plans for the construction being approved (ADJ, 20/05/1910 p. 4), a preview on the day of its opening (ADJ, 08/06/1911 p. 6) and a report on a celebratory luncheon that took place at the Palace Hotel the following day (ADJ, 09/06/1911 p. 5).

The latter article states that 3,514 blocks of dressed white Kemnay granite were provided for the building from the yard of John Fyfe, Ltd.

Historic Environment Scotland's listed building information highlights a number of the building's significant architectural features. The arched, cavetto moulded and keystoned ground floor main entrance. The cornice over the ground floor. The giant four Ionic engaged columns framing the angle and neighbouring bays with pedimented windows on the first floor. The pilasters flanking the outer bays with all remaining windows keystoned.

Above the columns is the entablature with its prominent cornice. Scrolled brackets support an octagonal cupola with Ionic order framing arched openings, supporting the granite dome and finial.

Morgan states that after the Royal Insurance left, the building stood empty for some time but was eventually handsomely restored. Since 2001 the ground floor has been occupied by a Starbucks coffee shop, which remains the case in this 2024 image.

Location

Union Street

Keyword

Architecture

Photographer

Roddy Millar