The Hop Exchange

The Hop Exchange is a commercial building located on Southwark Street, constructed in 1866 by R.H. Moore. Originally built as a hop and malt exchange with offices and showrooms, it features a stuccoed exterior supported by cast-iron columns. The building has six internal storeys and a basement, but the front displays three giant storeys and a basement across 39 bays.

The ground floor showcases a modified Corinthian order of cast-iron half-columns resting on basement plinths, with service doors positioned between them. A grand entrance portico, off-centre and rising through two storeys, features three segmental-arched openings adorned with masks on the keys, the central opening being wider. The keys support a cornice and pediment, which is topped with an eagle and includes a relief scene depicting the brewing trade in the tympanum. The entrance is enhanced by elaborate iron gates decorated with hop plants.

On the first floor, the segment-arched windows are fitted with plate tracery and have architraves that rest on the cornices of the lower Corinthian order, complete with keystones that support the cornice. The second floor features round-arched windows with plate tracery set between pilasters with impost capitals. Above, the parapet has a recessed corbelled section above each arch.

Inside, the building boasts a galleried court spanning four levels beneath a skylight. The upper three floors are equipped with cast-iron balconies, which have balustrades intricately decorated with hop plant motifs and monograms. The top storey has been rebuilt at a reduced height, and the original glass and iron roof of the exchange hall was replaced following a fire in 1920.