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Latitude: 55.9533 / 55°57'12"N
Longitude: -3.1968 / 3°11'48"W
OS Eastings: 325365
OS Northings: 674014
OS Grid: NT253740
Mapcode National: GBR 8MF.YD
Mapcode Global: WH6SL.VMWG
Plus Code: 9C7RXR33+87
Entry Name: Commercial Union Insurance, 26 George Street, Edinburgh
Listing Name: 26 George Street and 53 and 55 Hanover Street
Listing Date: 13 January 1966
Category: A
Source: Historic Scotland
Source ID: 367478
Historic Scotland Designation Reference: LB28865
Building Class: Cultural
ID on this website: 200367478
Location: Edinburgh
County: Edinburgh
Town: Edinburgh
Electoral Ward: City Centre
Traditional County: Midlothian
Tagged with: Office building
J M Dick Peddie, 1908-9. 3-storey attic and basement Renaissance commercial office on corner site. Polished Portland stone, with granite base course. Channelled rustication and voussoirs at ground, giant order Ionic columns to 1st and 2nd floors with balustrades between bases; modillioned cornice and balustraded parapet; 1st floor windows with lugged architraves and cornices; 2nd floor windows with bracketed and draped cills, and husks at head. 3-bay recessed drum corner with consoled copper dome supporting bronze statue of Prudence by Penny Portsmouth.
HANOVER STREET ELEVATION: 5-bay. Doors to outer bays; that to left architraved and corniced with carved crest above.
GEORGE STREET ELEVATION: 3-bay. Architraved doorcase at centre with consoled open pediment containing carved crest; 2-leaf panelled doors.
Plate glass casement windows. Corniced ashlar stacks. 2 large vertical flagpoles on roof; grey slates.
INTERIOR: hall with Roman Doric columns of Pavanazzo marble with elided entablatures; stair with heavy balusters and panelled corridor to 1st floor boardroom with Adam revival ceiling, fine late 18th century marble chimneypiece, perhaps from original house on site, and panels of Utrecht velvet.
Built for the Edinburgh Life Assurance Company, who moved from their premises next door at 22-24 George Street. The velvet is from the company's old office next door.
External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.
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