Grammar School, Skene Street, Aberdeen

Grammar School, Skene Street, Aberdeen

This is a 2-storey school with attic, arranged in an E-plan across 15 bays and built in stages between 1861 and 1926. The main structure was designed by James Matthews and built between 1861 and 1863. Classrooms and library were added to the north-west by J A O Allan in 1905. East and west wings were added by Allan in 1913, and a gymnasium was constructed to the north-west in 1926. The building suffered fire damage in 1986 and was reconstructed with internal redesign by Robertson's of Elgin Ltd. in 1992.

The building is executed in Scots Baronial style, faced with tooled coursed granite ashlar finely finished to the margins. It features a base course, cill course, dividing string course, and chamfered reveals. The ground floor displays curved angles which are corbelled to form right angles at the upper floors. The principal block has a crenellated parapet corbelled at the base, with crowstepped gables throughout and an eaves course.

The south-east principal elevation is nearly symmetrical, with a 7-bay central block arranged 1-2-1-2-1. A gabled entrance bay advances to the centre, featuring a decorative ashlar doorpiece with a segmental-arched doorway with decorative roll moulding. The keystone bears the initials "AAP". Above is a corniced, scrolled tablet bearing the Aberdeen coat of arms flanked by spherical finials. The deep-set entrance has a 2-leaf panelled timber door. An architraved window to the centre of the first floor is topped by a roundel enclosing a sculpted tree. An attic window sits below a spherical finial at the apex. Single windows light the ground and first floors of the left and right returns.

An engaged circular-plan turret sits at the re-entrant angle to the left, battered at the base. Small windows occupy the ground and first floors, with a dormer breaking the base of a conical spire covered in fishscale slates. A decorative iron weathervane finial crowns the apex. Bipartite windows run through the ground and first floors of two flanking bays to left and right. Gabled bays to the outer left and right feature rectangular-plan tripartite windows through ground and first floors. A louvred narrow opening is set in each gablehead, with a spherical finial at the apex. Angle turrets at the inner angles are corbelled out at the first floor, with arrow slit openings to the first stage and a small window to the second stage. These support conical spires with fishscale roofs and spherical lead finials. Windows light the ground and first floors of the inside returns. Four bays of outside returns have regular fenestration at ground floor, with gableted windows breaking the eaves to the first floor. These gables feature thistle, rose, shamrock and fleur-de-lys finials. Two 3-bay recessed links connect to the 1913 wings to left and right.

The east link is asymmetrical, featuring a segmental-arched, roll-moulded doorway to the right of the ground floor with a 2-leaf door and fanlights. To the left are two windows at ground floor level and two at first floor level. A crenellated parapet crowns the link, with a recessed floor behind. A gableted window breaking the eaves has "JM Architect" tooled in the gablehead. A window to the right of the first floor rises to a circular-plan tower at the second floor with a window to its centre and a balustraded parapet. A slender turret corbels out from the re-entrant angle to the left, with irregular fenestration and a lead ogee roof topped by a spherical finial.

The west link features a square-plan 4-stage engaged tower advanced to the left bay, with a segmental-arched doorway and 2-leaf door to the first stage. Windows occupy the centre of the second and third stages. The fourth stage sits above the crenellated parapet and is gableted, tooled with "PD 1631", with a clock set in the gable to the south-east and north-west. A spherical finial crowns the apex. A tall circular turret corbels out from the first floor of the re-entrant angle to the right, with irregular fenestration. A gableted window breaking the eaves of the conical spire carries a decorative iron weathervane to the apex. Two flanking bays to the right advance at ground floor, each with a window. A crenellated parapet crowns these, with a recessed window behind. A single gableted window breaks the eaves to the first floor above, with a tooled monogram in the gablehead and a stone thistle at the apex. Gabled 1913 wings adjoin the outer right and left, featuring bipartite windows to the centre bays and shallow oriels at first floor. These are flanked to left and right by single windows at ground and first floors. A louvred narrow opening is set in each gablehead, with a spherical finial at the apex.

The north-east elevation is asymmetrical, with a 9-bay block and a 5-bay wing advanced to the left. The 9-bay block features a gabled bay advanced to the outer right with a louvred narrow opening in the gablehead. A recessed bay flanks to the left with regular fenestration. Bipartite windows occupy the third bay from the right at ground and first floors, topped by a crenellated parapet. Two gabled bays flank to the left, with a doorway to the left of the ground floor and regular fenestration to the remainder. A narrow opening is set in each gablehead. Four bays to the left have regular fenestration at ground and first floors, with a louvred bipartite dormer to the attic above. A 3-bay block links the advanced wing to the outer left with regular fenestration. The east wing, built in 1913, has a 5-bay north-east elevation with regular fenestration at ground floor and gableted windows with decorative finials breaking the eaves to the first floor. The 7-bay right return shows two gabled bays to the left with regular fenestration and louvred openings in the gablehead, flanked by bays with irregular fenestration and a modern iron fire-escape to the centre. The rear, south-west elevation displays two gabled bays with regular fenestration, adjoining a link block to the outer right.

The north-west elevation is asymmetrical, with a 3-bay 1905 block and 6-bay wing partially obscured by modern courtyard. The 3-bay block advances to the left and is nearly symmetrical, featuring a bipartite window to the ground floor of a gabled advanced centre bay, flanked by single windows. To the right, a modern flat-roofed porch obscures the view. A shallow oriel window occupies the first floor above, with a louvred narrow opening in the gablehead. The flanking bay to the right has its ground floor obscured by modern porch and main entrance, while the bay to the left shows bipartite windows flanked by single windows at ground floor. Bipartite windows with round-arched pediments break the eaves to left and right of the first floor, flanked by single windows. Modern additions adjoin to the right. A 7-bay right return has irregular fenestration and openings, with a gabled bay to the left flanked by modern additions forming a square-plan courtyard. The 6-bay block forms the rear of the 1913 wing adjoining the main block. A gabled bay sits to the right with two modern windows at ground floor and two at first floor, with a louvred opening in the gablehead. Irregular fenestration occupies the flanking bays to the left. Modern additions adjoin to the right. A modern corridor advances to the right, incorporating the pedimented doorway from the 1757 former Aberdeen Grammar School, surmounted by a birdcage bellcote with spherical finial (originally positioned adjoining the west of the 3-bay block to the north). A rectangular-plan gymnasium, built in 1926, adjoins the modern additions to the west and has regular fenestration.

The south-west elevation is predominantly obscured by modern additions, but originally featured 5 bays with regular fenestration at ground floor and gableted windows with decorative finials breaking the eaves to the first floor.

The building is roofed in grey slate with lead ridges and has coped granite ridge stacks. Cast-iron rainwater goods are throughout. Windows are predominantly 8-pane timber sash and case.

The interior was largely remodelled following the 1986 fire. Little original interior survives, though the original archway and plaster ceiling to the former entrance remain, as do panelled timber cupboards in the Head Teacher's office.