A photograph of the arches at the west side of Union Terrace Gardens. The street shown above is Union Terrace.

The arches and the balustrade as shown were constructed from 1889 to enable the widening of Union Terrace.

These balustrades were a continuation of those on Denburn Viaduct. These copied the design then present on Union Bridge. Those on Union Bridge were removed when it was widened between 1905-1908.

In the 1890s, the granite balustrades on Denburn Viaduct were continued all the way around the Gardens to meet up with Union Bridge.

The balustrades were also used as a design feature on the buildings on the new viaducts at the north end, such as the Public Library and Free South Church, which both opened in 1892.

As shown here, these arches were enclosed as part of the 2019-2022 redevelopment. The middle arch in this image is now the location of public toilets.

This photograph was taken on 29th of April 2024.

Location

Union Terrace Gardens

Keyword

Parks and gardens

Photographer

David Oswald