Chimera - 68-70 Vicar Lane - Bradford, UK
Posted by: 
dtrebilc
N 53° 47.681 W 001° 44.827
30U E 582527 N 5961406
This chimera is above the corner entrance of a large textile warehouse.
Waymark Code: WMWTNA
Location: Yorkshire, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 10/12/2017
Views: 0
The building is in the Little Germany area of Bradford. In its heyday Bradford was a wealthy city founded on textiles and was known as the 'Wool Capital of the World'.
The Little Germany area was sited away from the mills that manufactured most of the textiles and housed specialist textile processors and warehouse. Many of these warehouses were set up by immigrants to the area, mainly from Germany, hence the name of the area.
This building is a Historic England Grade II Listed Building.
"2. Part of the same warehouse block as No 66 qv.
Built in 1866 to the designs of Eli Milnes. Corner site with Currer Street. Four-storey tall palazzo elevations of sandstone ashlar rising from deep blind basement with platband over. Bowed corner. The Currer Street front ascends hill on slight concave curve contrasting effectively with the corner. Facing Vicar Lane the basement has boldly vermicu- lated coursing whilst to Currer Street there are rock faced panels with deeply grooved coursing between. Horizontal grooving to ground floor of Vicar Lane front. Dentil cornice over ground floor, sill bands to upper floors, bracketed projecting eaves cornice. The corner is flanked by grooved pilaster strips, panelled at third floor level; cornices broken forward over.
The entrance on corner is a tripartite group of archivolt arched pilastered niches flanking similar arched doorway with head keystone. Bowed door with fanlight. Large fielded panels below niches. The upper floor corner windows are tripartite, architrave surround with consoles to cornice on first floor, similar but without consoles on second floor and plain on third floor. The ground floor windows to Vicar Lane are round-healed with grooving struck into the arches. Large round arched waggonway. Plain close set window to upper floor. The sandstone "brick" elevation to Currer Street has archivolt arched ground floor windows linked by impost string. Plain windows above. Important corner site."
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