Victoria Building, Liverpool University

The Victoria Building at Liverpool University is the main university building, constructed between 1887 and 1892, designed by A. Waterhouse. It is made of common brick with red brick and terracotta dressings, topped with a slate roof. The building has three storeys with attics, featuring 13 bays, of which 5 face Ashton Street. The symmetrical facade includes a battered stone base and red brick bands, with polygonal pilasters that rise to pinnacles above a balustrade. The windows vary in design: the ground floor has paired windows with segmental relieving arches, the first floor features cross windows, and the second floor displays windows with three cusped lights set within blind arcading. The first bay is notable for its two-storey oriel and gable, while other bays alternate between gables and gabled dormers. A small louvre on the ridge has mullioned and transomed openings. The ninth bay includes a tower with an arched entrance and a gable featuring an oriel above. The tripartite windows on this bay have flanking date shields inscribed with 1837 and 1857. The first stage of the tower displays the Royal Arms and a mosaic panel with an inscription, topped with machicolation. The upper stage features a four-faced clock. Polygonal angle buttresses transition into panelled pinnacles with lead spirelets. The lead spine has two tiers of lucarnes. The tenth bay contains a staircase window with lancets and a gable above. The end bays curve around behind an octagonal tower, which has paired lancets, a balustrade, and two-light openings leading to a recessed round upper stage topped with a tiled spire that has a lead band and lucarnes. The Ashton Street facade continues the main facade's treatment, while a 20th-century steel frame has been attached to the main entrance.