Numbers 8-10 Station Road and 2-25 Harris Arcade, Reading

A shopping arcade dating from 1929-1931 built for John Harris and incorporating an earlier street frontage of a motor showroom which dates from before 1922, facing onto Station Road, all executed in a loosely Greek-Revival style.

MATERIALS AND PLAN: the street front to Station Road has a stone surround with carved decoration and plate glass windows with bronzed metal surrounds. Flooring of the arcade is of terrazzo and the skylights are of wood and metal with stained and clear glass panels. The arcade is of an irregular L shape with a shorter range leading east from Station Road and a longer range running north-south to connect with Friar Street.

EXTERIOR: the street front to Station Road has three principal bays at ground-floor level, the central one of which forms the entrance to the arcade. To either side of the frontage are wide, panelled pilasters with projecting classical motifs. To either side of the arcade entrance are slender, panelled pilasters which have Ionic capitals. At right is a narrow bay containing a door which gives access to a staircase leading to the upper floors. The entablature above the front has a frieze with a central projecting panel that carries stainless steel lettering reading ‘HARRIS ARCADE’. The deep cornice above has regularly-spaced square blocks (mutules).

The threshold of the arcade at the Station Road end has a white marble block into which black lettering is set which reads ‘HARRIS ARCADE’. The shop windows to either side of this are of bowed plate-glass. The arcade pavement is of terrazzo with inlayed black borders. Shop fronts have granite stall risers and plate glass windows, divided by panelled pilasters. The window surrounds are a combination of base metal and timber, all painted in a consistent imitation of bronze. Above the shop windows is a deep transom light which includes regularly-placed pivoting windows to supply ventilation. Decorative motifs cast into the metal and carved into the wood include guilloche and anthemion mouldings and paterae. The shop front of number 25 has two, shallow bow windows with multiple panes placed at either side of the doorway. Rectangular skylights with raised sides have stained glass panels of blue, yellow and clear glass. The passageway of the arcade widens at the point between numbers 14 and 17, and the change of direction from North – South to East – West occurs in front of number 10.

INTERIOR: the interiors of all of the shops appear to have been remodelled and contain few original fittings, although suspended ceilings may mask original features. The upper floors were not inspected.