Mercat Cross, Glasgow Cross, 1 Saltmarket, Glasgow is a Grade B listed building in the Glasgow City local planning authority area, Scotland. First listed on 16 March 1993. Monument. 1 related planning application.

Mercat Cross, Glasgow Cross, 1 Saltmarket, Glasgow

WRENN ID
rough-slate-sorrel
Grade
B
Local Planning Authority
Glasgow City
Constituency
Glasgow East MP: John Grady (Lab)
Country
Scotland
Date first listed
16 March 1993
Type
Monument
Address
Mercat Cross, Glasgow Cross, 1 Saltmarket, Glasgow, G1 5AA
OS grid reference
NS 596 648
Coordinates
55.85649, -4.24352
Source
Historic Environment Scotland listing

Also on this page: related consents · flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The Mercat Cross, located at Glasgow Cross on Saltmarket, is a stone monument designed by Edith Burnet Hughes in 1930. It is a variant of other notable crosses, such as those in Edinburgh and Prestonpans. The structure features an octagonal balustraded base with a tall shaft that supports a seated unicorn, reflecting 17th century Scots architectural style. The rock-faced base includes a small chamber and has a roll-moulded doorway on the east side, along with small roll-moulded windows. The polished ashlar basecourse and dressings are complemented by small-paned windows and dummy gunholes. The monument is topped with a heavily corbelled and machicolated parapet that includes a balustrade. The slim octagonal stone shaft culminates in the unicorn, which holds a shield.

Local climate

Mercat Cross, Glasgow Cross, 1 Saltmarket, Glasgow sits in one of the wettest parts of the UK, with an average of 1,250 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 93% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 80% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 58 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 97% of listed buildings. Of these, 34 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.2°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

More on this building

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  • No EPC on record for this property
  • No sale records on file
  • Related listed building consents — 1 application
  • Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
  • Flood risk assessment
  • Radon risk assessment
  • Weather exposure and heating demand — rain and frost month by month and year by year, wind direction, solar and humidity
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