Cooper's Building, 499, 505 Great Western Road, Glasgow

R Duncan, architect; 1886. Flamboyant French

Renaissance commercial building, occupying prominent

corner site on Great Western Road/Bank Street. 3

storeys and attics; tall slender tower at angle. Ground

floor polished granite, upper floors ashlar. All upper

floor openings round arched; bi- or tripartite. Ground

floor colonnade of Corinthian pilasters with ashlar

capitals. Arched doorpiece at angle with columnar

reveals and incised archivolt; coffered ceiling. Above,

bowed 3-light windows at 1st and 2nd floors rising to

slender tower; aedicular windows below clock faces;

corbelled parapet with cast-iron balustrade; lucarnes

project from conical fishscale slate roof with lantern.

Great Western Road; 4-bay elevation. 1st floor windows

deeply recessed with paired columnar reveals. 2nd

floor, bipartite arcaded windows; giant orders at 1st

(E) and flanking 4th bays. Off-centre feature comprising

curved balustraded balcony at 2nd bay (E) of 2nd floor

supported on bold pilasters flanking window below. Bank

Street elevation: 10 bays, arched bipartites at 1st

floor, arcaded in groups of 3 at 2nd floor. Sash

windows; plate glass glazing. Giant orders used to

define terminal bays. Band courses between floors; eaves

cornice; deep plain parapet. Tall aedicular dormer;

steeply pitched French slate roof with cast-iron

brattishing. Very fine continuous cast-iron balcony to

1st floor supported on cast-iron brackets.

Interior: much altered though ground floor decoration

survives. Cast-iron columns with decorative capitals;

rich coffered plaster ceiling; good tessellated floor.