Description

James Millar of Glasgow, 1936-9; interior by Whytock and Reid of Edinburgh. Large, 2-storey with part-basement, 13-bay (bays grouped 1-5-1-5-1), piend and platform-roofed, Internation Modern H-plan office block with lower boardroom pavilion to SW and centre courtyard, converted to flats 1994. Exceptionally fine interiors. Polished ashlar. Base and string courses with decorative cornice and blocking course. Some round-headed openings, voussoirs, panelled aprons to ground N and pilastered bays to S.

N (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: slightly advanced centre bay with stepped blocking course and flagpole. 3 steps and flanking dwarf walls lead to broad, deep-set, 2-leaf panelled timber door below fielded panel and round-headed, decoratively astragalled stair window with wrought-iron balustrade in tall, moulded, round-arched panel. Flanking bays with 5 windows to each floor and slightly recessed blank outer bays. Modern rooflights partly obscured by blocking course.

S (GARDEN) ELEVATION: bays grouped 2-9-2. Broad steps with flanking terrace walls and urns lead to full width raised terrace; giant pilastrade to centre 9 bays, outer bays slightly recessed. Corniced, 2-leaf glazed door and 1st floor window at centre, regular fenestration to flanking bays. 2 ridge stacks.

E ELEVATION: 13-bay (grouped 3-1-5-1-3). Symmetrical fenestration including advanced outer bays and glazed curtain wall with wrought-iron balustrade to 5 centre bays of 1st floor.

W ELEVATION: symmetrical fenestration including advanced outer bays (those to right with boardroom pavilion as below) and raised basement with garage entrance to centre.

BOARDROOM PAVILION: tall single storey, piended pavilion with round-headed openings. 4 tall windows to S; 2 glazed doors to W; stepped elevation to N with dominant centre stack breaking eaves and small square-headed windows to outer bays; adjoining main building to E.

Small-pane glazing in iron-framed windows. Red pantiles. Ashlar-coped skews and stacks.

INTERIOR: full-height, ashlar-faced, top-lit entrance hall with gallery and elaborate wrought-iron balustrade, original lift, and brass stair balustrade. Some decorative plasterwork and extensive fine quality timber panelling to principal ground floor rooms by Whytock and Reid of Edinburgh, including fluted Ionic pilasters, carved fireplaces and doorheads. Superb board room with fine plasterwork, fielded timber panelling, elaborate carved detail to cornices, capitals, doorhead, fireplace, overmantel and window surrounds.

TERRACE, BOUNDARY WALLS, GATEPIERS, GATES AND RAILINGS: flat-coped ashlar terrace to S. Ashlar-coped boundary walls with corniced, square-coped ashlar gatepiers, decorative wrought-iron gates and inset railings to N, similar gatepiers to SE. Coped rubble and ashlar wall with round-arched opening and decorative wrought-iron gate to W. Coped rubble boundaries elsewhere.

Statement of Interest

Opened in 1939 as the Head Office of Nairns Linoleum, Braehead House overlooks the Firth of Forth from its terraced garden elevation to the S and the Linoleum Works (Western Factory Block listed separately) fronting Victoria Road to the N. Converted to flats 1994.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17807095

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.

Recommended Books

• 
  For the Record
• 
  Maintaining and Repairing Old Houses: A Guide to Conservation, Sustainability and Economy
• 
  Warwickshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  [(Bedfordshire, Huntingdon and Peterborough)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1968)
• 
  Bristol (Pevsner Architectural Guides: City Guides)
• 
  Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)