Entrance Lodge And Gate Piers, George Watson's College, 73 Colinton Road, Edinburgh

Entrance Lodge and Gate Piers, George Watson's College, Edinburgh

This large educational complex comprises a substantial main school building designed by James B Dunn between 1930 and 1932, together with an entrance lodge, boundary walls, gatepiers, war memorial, and rifle range. The war memorial was designed by J A Carfrae around 1920, originally as a First World War memorial but later adapted to commemorate the Second World War as well.

Main Building

The main school is a severe classical structure on an H-plan with a central hall, constructed in pink-grey Doddington sandstone and cream harl. The principal elevations feature ashlar work with sandstone and reconstituted stone dressings. The base is formed as a plinth with channelled quoins to the front; bays are divided by giant pilasters with moulded capitals, each bay containing single windows to each floor.

The northwestern elevation facing Colinton Road extends for 39 bays. At the centre is a slightly advanced 3-bay entrance portal, flanked by 15-bay ranges and advanced 3-bay pavilions. The entrance portal is distinguished by a fretted guilloche dividing the floors, a blank frieze and dentilled pediment above. The ground floor is channelled, with a round-arched doorway at the centre featuring deep cavetto reveals, a 2-leaf panelled door and semi-circular astragalled fanlight. The doorway is flanked by short balustrades and decorative wrought-iron lamp standards. The central first-floor window above is architraved. A large galleon weathervane serves as a finial to the pediment. The flanking ranges have flat panelled aprons to the windows and a tall parapet. The pavilions are distinguished by rusticated quoins and parapets bearing tablet and urn finials.

The southeastern rear elevation comprises 53 bays and features a rubble base course with bays divided by shallow pilasters. The parapet is plain and tall. Three central bays are slightly advanced, with channelling at ground-floor level and pilasters with moulded capitals carrying a blank frieze, cornice and parapet bearing a tablet. The centre bay contains an entrance door, with two secondary doors positioned five bays to the left and right, each set within moulded ashlar panels. Three end bays to each side are slightly advanced, bearing plain tablets to the parapet.

The southwestern and northeastern courtyard elevations enclose a 6-bay central hall with a flat roof and square twin clock towers to the southeast. Two-storey projecting side corridors flank the hall. Giant strip pilasters and buttresses break the eaves as stylised square dies. The ground floor features alternating round-arched doors and windows with flush red brick hoodmoulds; rectangular windows at first-floor level have red brick lintels. Segmental-arched clerestory windows light the central hall, their voussoirs formed in red brick. The platform roof incorporates three large central skylights. The rear elevation of the front block includes advanced end pavilions with alternating ashlar and rendered bays, and a central ashlar bay to the rear in the southwestern courtyard, channelled at ground floor with a large carved armorial panel above a keystoned doorway. The remaining bays include modern additions. The rear elevation of the rear block features single windows and band courses of reconstituted stone. A diagonal entrance block occupies the re-entrant angle with the hall, featuring a stepped doorway to the centre with four single windows flanking, and a first-floor modern addition above.

The roof covering is predominantly of green slate to the rear blocks and hall. Most windows are fixed multi-pane metal windows with hopper panels, though the main entrance bays retain multi-pane timber sash and case windows.

Interior

The entrance hall is notable for its reeded green marble columns with neck bands of gold mosaic and green and white marble patterns to the floor, walls and staircase, which echo a compartmentalised ceiling with skylight. A heralded marble panel is dated 1723. The central hall features a large architraved proscenium to the stage with a panelled apron below. A fluted frieze springs from the deep coomb ceiling, which is lit by Diocletian clerestory windows with sweeping embrasures. Large skylights with border glazing illuminate the space, and rectangular compartmentalised ceilings with carved beams extend throughout the building. Boarded dadoes are employed throughout. The library was refurbished in 1950 with period detailing including a tall timber dado of thin veneer, decorated with inscriptions and incised motifs, and basket-arched doorpieces, one of which incorporates a clock.

Entrance Lodge

The entrance lodge, also designed by James B Dunn between 1903 and 1932, is a single-storey structure with an attic and piend roof, rendered with a band course of pink-grey sandstone above the ground floor. The 3-bay front elevation has a central ashlar bay containing a keystoned stepped door surround, with single windows at ground-floor level. First-floor windows break the eaves. A tall rubble boundary wall with semi-circular coping curves at the gate entrance, formed with rake-jointed rubble. Three square ashlar gatepiers feature raised panels and anthemion carving to each face. The cast-iron gates are ornamented with anthemion motifs.

War Memorial

The war memorial, designed by J A Carfrae in 1920, originally commemorated the First World War but was relocated to the new school site and subsequently adapted to serve as a memorial to both world wars. It comprises an ashlar base supporting a portal of square ashlar piers and broken pediment bearing an armorial motif (a tree) and motto. An apse behind contains an inscribed dome of gold mosaic and copper roof carried on fluted columns to the rear. Ornamental iron gates feature anthemion and key pattern motifs.

Rifle Range

The rifle range, designed by J B Dunn and built between 1930 and 1932, was formerly a junior play shed. It is a single-storey structure with piend-roofed end pavilions, rendered with pink-grey sandstone dressings. The end pavilions contain single windows. The main elevation features blind arcading to the centre range, with sandstone piers and red brick arches.