34-40, Ludgate Hill EC4

This is a mid-19th century building on Ludgate Hill, consisting of numbers 34 to 40. It has five main floors and two dormered floors in the roof, with a facade of nine bays, the central three set back. The ground floor has modern shopfronts, but retains a central recessed entrance with a semi-circular head and an iron-railed balcony projecting from the central first-floor window. The facade above ground floor level is freely designed using French Renaissance details. The windows are generally round-headed and grouped in threes. The windows on the second, third, and fourth floors have attached columns and undivided plate glass in sliding sashes. The first and second floors are united by giant pilasters framing the outer bays and untapered columns to the recessed centre. A cornice is located at the third-floor level, above which the third and fourth floors are similarly united by giant pilasters supporting a decorative entablature with scallop ornaments in the frieze. Modern dormers have been added to the roof. The group value is due to its contribution to the character of Ludgate Hill.