Leask's, Esplanade, Lerwick

John M Aitken, circa 1900. 2-storey and attic 5 x 1-bay asymmetrical Scots Baronial tenement with chamfered corner bay at SE corner and single storey shop wing along N elevation; gable to harbour with closes flanking to N and S. Stugged sandstone walls with polished and droved ashlar dressings and details, stugged rubble N elevation. Chamfered arrises and sloping cills at windows.

E (ESPLANADE) ELEVATION: asymmetrical, single bay crowstepped gable with chamfered corner bay to left and single storey shop with crowstepped and ball-finialled gable projecting to right. Plate glass fixed-lights to shop windows at ground. Tripartite windows at 1st and 2nd floors of gable; latter with round-headed lights, circular crenellated bartizan (with flagpole attached) corbelled out at right (NE) corner. Segmental turret corbelled out at 1st floor of corner bay, corbelled out to semi-octagonal 3-light corner tower breaking eaves.

S ELEVATION: asymmetrical, 5 bays, irregularly fenestrated at ground, entrance door at ground in bay to outer right; armorial panel above, roll-moulded frame, carved ship and date 1836. Dormers with crowstepped and ball-finialled stone dormerheads breaking eaves in

3 bays to right, metal-clad box dormers breaking eaves in bay to left.

N ELEVATION: single storey shop wing projecting at ground. Irregular fenestration at 1st and 2nd floors; concrete 4-light canted oriel projecting at centre, dormers with crowstepped and ball-finialled dormerheads in 3 bays to left with shouldered and crowstepped wallhead stack between bay to outer left, matching wallhead stack to right of centre and metal-clad dormers in bays to right.

Some plate glass timber sash and case windows surviving at 1st floor, modern glazing elsewhere. Grey slate roof with cast-iron gutters and downpipes, bell-cast pyramidal roof with wrought-iron weathervane to tower. Stugged ashlar stacks, coped with tall circular cans; crowstepped principal gable with thistle finial.