Pannier Market

The Pannier Market is a covered market building dating from the 1860s, constructed as part of improvements to the Bedford Estate. It is built of Hurdwick stone, with granite and cream brick dressings, and slate roofs, with some asbestos-cement slate on concealed slopes. The building comprises a long central hall surrounded by a complete ambulatory. It has a central gabled roof, with lower pitched roofs returning at the ends to slightly canted corners and internal valleys.

The facade facing Bedford Square, overlooking New Hall, features two wide doorways with segmental pointed brick heads, a central stone fountain within an arched recess displaying a shield with the letter 'B' (for Bedford), and flanking windows on splayed corners. The central gable above has three segmental pointed lights set to granite lintels, following the slope of the gable, over a central lower-level light.

The left and right sides have five-pane windows at eaves, alternating with segmental-headed doors in a rhythmic pattern of three doors, four windows, a door, four windows, and finally a door. The windows have brick jambs and granite sills. The far end mirrors the entrance end, with a centrally recessed pointed arch in plain stone. The central hall contains a range of 13 ten-pane windows on each side, set to granite lintels that match the profile of the ambulatory window sills. A long central roof light runs across the roof plane, with similar stretches of roof light incorporated into the north ambulatory. A small offset plinth runs around the building. The openings are accessed via plank doors.

Internally, the central hall has 13 bays, plus smaller bays at each end where the walls are splayed. The trusses are queen post trusses. Clerestory windows are positioned above a three-course brick string course, overseeing a five-bay arcade of wide pointed segmental arches with large flush granite voussoirs, supported by plain stone piers. The gable ends have a single window over three windows. The aisles are supported by king post trusses, with alternate trusses springing from corbels at the head of the arcade arches.

The nave connects to the west end through two segmental arches, but the east end, along with the ambulatory, is currently blocked by a temporary concrete partition. The floors are of good quality squared granite slabs throughout, with boarding underlining the roof slopes. Aside from the partition, the building appears to be as originally constructed; the detailing is robust, having withstood over a century of use. At the time of inspection in August 1988, a market was in progress. The building is enclosed by New Hall to the west, and numbers 9-18 Duke Street to the north. The latter, with its iron colonnade facing the Pannier Market, dates from 1860 and appears to be part of the same development.