40-44 Montgomery Street, Edinburgh

Possibly designed by John Chesser, 1880s; built between 1896 and 1909. Classical, near-symmetrical, 4-storey, corner tenement block with splayed corner and distinctive Doric doorpiece and balcony to Brunswick Street. Polished ashlar; squared coursed rubble with dressed margins to rear. Base course; cill course to 2nd floor; main cornice (dentilled to Brunswick Street and corner elevations) dividing 2nd and 3rd floors; eaves cornice and blocking course. Regular fenestration; sunken panelled aprons to ground floor windows to Brunswick Street and corner elevation; architraved windows to Brunswick Street elevation and corner.

E (BRUNSWICK STREET) ELEVATION: 4-bay (5 bays to ground floor) elevation. Dividing bands between ground and 1st floors; 1st floor cill cornice. To ground floor, to centre bay, timber-panelled door with letterbox fanlight; doorpiece of attached fluted Greek Doric columns supporting entablature; above, wrought iron trellis pattern balcony with Greek key border. Bipartite windows to all floors to 1st, 3rd and 4th bays from left.

NE (CORNER) ELEVATION: single bay elevation. Dividing bands between ground and 1st floors; 1st floor cill cornice. Bipartite windows.

N (MONTGOMERY STREET) ELEVATION: 5-bay (6-bay to ground floor) elevation. To ground floor, 4th bay from left, timber-panelled door with letterbox fanlight. 1st floor cill course. Bipartite windows to all floors to outer right bay.

GLAZING etc: predominantly plate glass in timber sash and case windows. Platform roof; grey slate; stone skews and skewputts. To E elevation, 2 ridge stacks to left, 1 wallhead stack; to N elevation, 1 wallhead stack, 1 mutual ridge stack to right; stacks corniced ashlar with circular cans.