31-32 West Maitland Street, Edinburgh

A corner block of four storeys and basement, built in 1880 by Thornton Shiells & Thomson and substantially remodelled at ground floor in 1932 by Reid & Forbes as a bank. The building presents polished channelled sandstone ashlar with polished dressings throughout, cleaned at ground floor level. A black granite band marks the base of the ground floor, with a grey granite band at cill level above. The rendered surrounds to the third floor, base course, frieze to ground floor, and corniced cill course to the third floor are complemented by a full cornice and blocking course. Single coped wallhead stacks rise from each elevation.

The architectural detailing is refined throughout. Slim Doric pilasters frame the principal facades, while a distinctive bowed corner bay forms the building's focal point. Ground floor windows feature scalloped cills, with moulded margins to those on the first and second floors. First floor windows are finished with cornices, while second floor windows have bracketed cills.

The West Maitland Street elevation rises four storeys across five bays. The ground floor is advanced and features fine moulding with a cartouche at the head of a deep-set panelled timber door to a bay at the left. Above this is a rectangular opening with an ironwork grille. The remaining four bays contain deep-set windows set within a recessed panel, flanked by recessed pilasters with stylised capitals and moulded pedestals. Relief rosettes sit above the outer window bays, whilst a disc and guilloche pattern ornaments the frieze. Pairs of Doric pilasters frame the bay to the outer left at first and second floor level, with regular fenestration continuing to all bays on the upper floors.

The corner bay is advanced and framed at first and second floor by two pairs of Doric pilasters sharing a mutual base and cornice. The advanced bank entrance at ground level is distinguished by black granite to the entrance returns. The entrance itself comprises a deep-set two-leaf timber panelled door with lion-faced knockers, a carved timber disc pattern frieze, and a semicircular fanlight fronted by an ornate ironwork frame. Large glazed panels with geometrical-pattern metal astragals light the two-leaf inner doors. The entrance is framed by segmental-arched moulding and narrow panelled pilasters, encapsulated by large pedestalled panelled pilasters bearing stylised Egyptian capitals. These support a plain frieze and key-patterned cornice incorporating an elaborate cartouche. Bowed bipartite windows light the floors above.

The Palmerston Place elevation to the north-east rises four storeys and basement across four bays, with the ground floor advanced. A base course and banded cill course mark the basement level, which features grilled deep-set windows to most bays, with the exception of the penultimate bay to the left, which has a deep-set timber door. A bull-faced boundary wall with street-level coping occupies the right side. At ground floor level, each bay contains a deep-set window; the outer right window is set in a recessed panel with recessed guilloche frieze at its head and an advanced block cill, whilst three windows to the left are set within a recessed panel. Stylised capitals and moulded pedestals flank the pilasters, with relief rosettes above the outer bays. A disc and guilloche pattern ornaments the frieze, and pairs of Doric pilasters frame the bay to the outer right at first and second floor level. Regular fenestration continues to all bays on the upper floors.

Ground floor windows throughout the building are fitted with metal-framed, margin-paned glazing, whilst the upper floors retain two-pane timber sash and case windows. The roof is covered in grey slate, bowed at the corner, with coped mutual and shouldered wallhead stacks surmounted by tall moulded cylindrical cans. Cast-iron rainwater goods complete the external fabric.

Spear-headed railings with urn finials, set in coping, line the Palmerston Place frontage.

Despite conversion to shop use, the interior retains substantially intact 1930s bank fittings of considerable quality. Fine wooden doorcases with carved details survive, and above the entrance to the manager's office stands a wooden clock set upon naturalistic carving. Multiple cornicing bands feature geometric decoration, particularly notable on the three globe chandeliers that ornament the banking hall. Anthemion motifs decorate the capitals of the pilasters.