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Summary

Description

William Nixon, 1845-9. 4-storey, falling to 7 at rear, 5 x 8 bay, Classical, former Police Chambers situated on important corner site of Parliament Square and High Street and incorporating segmental arch leading to Old Fishmarket Close. 5 bay section to N (High Street) converted into flats with commercial premises to ground. District Courts and cells to S, entered from Parliament Square.

FURTHER DESCRIPTION: ashlar, channelled rustication to ground, coursed rubble to rear. Base course, impost course, band courses, dentilled cornice to 3rd storey. Recessed round-arched window openings to ground and top storey, those to ground with pointed voussoirs. Upper storey windows with moulded architraves, consoled cornices and some blind balustered balconies to 1st storey. Some windows to rear with bar grilles. Slender cast-iron column to canted corner to 1st and 2nd storey at Old Fishmarket Close.

W (Parliament Square) elevation with slightly advanced 5 bays to left with central Doric-columned entrance porch with glass and timber entrance door with round-arch fanlight and narrow side lights. 3-bays to right with central timber and glass entrance door with plate glass side lights and flanking bi-partite windows with stone mullions.

Predominantly 12-pane timber sash and case windows. Coped gable and ridge stacks. Grey slates. Piended roof with glass cupola

BOUNDARY WALL AND RAILINGS: to W. Low, stone wall surmounted by decorative iron railings.

INTERIOR: (seen 2007). Section converted into flats retains wide, open-well stair. Some decorative cornicing and working timber shutters.

District Courts: one court with timber panelling, seats and bench, with carved timber canopy over judge's seat.

Statement of Special Interest

A Group with Nos 2-11 Parliament Square, Advocates' Library, Signet Library, Parliament Hall, Lothian Chambers, St Giles High Kirk, Charles II Statue, City Chambers, Alexander and Bucephalus Statue, Queensberry Memorial and the Market Cross.

This is an extremely fine, little externally altered, Classical corner building situated in a prominent and key site between Parliament Square and the High Street. It was designed to assume a continuation of the Classical façade design of 2-11 Parliament Square (see separate listing) and with it forms one of the best examples in the country of an unaltered stretch of mid 19th century Classical architecture. The building is distinguished by its high quality Classical detailing, notably the Doric-columned porch and the architrave features to the windows. To the rear, the juxtaposition of the height of the building and the narrowness of Old Fishmarket Close adds significantly to the character of Edinburgh Old Town.

The building was built as the Police Chambers for the Edinburgh Police. In 2000, the North section of the building was divided into flats and the South section remains as the District Courts.

William Nixon (c1810-1848) came from Dublin to the Office of Works in Edinburgh in 1840. His work thereafter was mainly associated with maintenance in the law courts and various cathedrals with some newly designed buildings. His work is concentrated predominantly in the East Coast, especially St Andrews.

List description revised as part of the Edinburgh Holyrood Ward resurvey 2007-8.

References

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