Black Vaults, 85, 86, 87 Giles Street, Leith, Edinburgh

1682, incorporating vaults possibly of 16th century, heightened 1785, converted to flats and offices 1984. 4-storey 11-bay warehouse with enclosed courtyard to front. Cream sandstone, coursed rubble with some ashlar dressings. Relieving arches over most windows.

NW (front) elevation: gabled centre bay with apex stack (1785), carved inscribed panel above ground floor; larger rectangular opening at ground floor. Single windows. Former hoist doors (now with iron window guards) and hoist gable to 3rd bay. Hoist doors and gable (as above) to 9th bay, doorway at ground floor; architraved doorway at 1st floor with bracketted landing accessed by forestair with iron balusters, 2-leaf panelled door. 10th and 11th bay with doorways at ground floor (10th bricked-up), 1st floor windows heightened with transoms and joined to blocked 2nd floor windows.

SW (Giles Street) elevation: 3-bay gabled with moulded skews and apex stack. Tall transomed windows at 1st floor, centre window bipartite with bracketted cill and finialled pediment with carved date '1785'. 2 windows at 3rd floor, inscribed panel to centre. Corniced window with window guard to gablehead.

NE (St Anthony Street) elevation: gabled with apex stack. Broad, pedestrian doorway at ground floor. Broad windows to centre bay, bipartite, with window guard at 2nd and 3rd, partly blocked at 1st floor.

SE (rear) elevation: irregular single and bipartite windows; modern dormer and skylights to roof.

Mostly modern small-pane timber casement windows, some 12-pane sash and case windows. Modern pantiled roof; 3 apex stacks (see above).

Interior: vaulted cellar with central tunnel and 4 vaulted cellars off. Room at ground floor with coved, elaborate floral plaster ceiling and cornice, plaster cartouche with putti motif and swagged niche, in style of Thomas Clayton (mid 18th century). Large room at 1st floor (taking up 2 floors) with deep cornices and late 19th/turn of the century woodwork.

Boundary walls and gatepiers: tall rubble later 19th century wall with flat coping enclosing courtyard to front, 2 tall red sandstone ashlar gatepiers, pedimented ogival coping with ball finial.