Glasgow City Chambers Illuminated

Glasgow City Chambers building is an “interpretation of Renaissance Classicism incorporating Italianate styles”. Designed by architect William Young, inaugurated in 1888 by Queen Victoria, it is an imposing presence on one side of George Square and extends for several blocks behind.

The photo above shows the city’s Cenotaph, in front of the City Chambers, in George Square bedecked with poppies and wreaths following the November 2011 Remembrance.

It is interesting to notice how the design of the War Memorial mimics the outline of the City Chambers behind, the two lion heads akin to the towers on either side and the central monument akin to the Chamber’s central tower.

On average, I’m not fond of flash in photographs but I experimented with some fill flash to illuminate the poppy display.

While many will be familiar with Glasgow City Chambers’ grand exterior façades that befit its noble municipal status, stepping inside may come as a surprise. Perhaps it shouldn’t be a surprise but the opulence of the mosaic floors, granite pillars, staircases of Carrera marble, alabaster and ceilings decorated with gold leaf are almost jaw dropping. The local council offices were never like this.

Of course it was constructed as the seat of civic government for a prosperous city once considered the “Second City of the Empire”.

The ornate entrance to the Glasgow City Chambers welcomes visitors with mosaic floors, shiny granite pillars and intricately decorated ceilings.

Marble Staircases

It’s not just a grand entrance hall. The sumptuous décor extends over several floors and throughout many corridors and chambers.

Gilded corridors of power.

The grand stairwell. A plaque on the wall claimed the extent of this marbled grandeur surpassed even that of The Vatican, making it the greatest marbled staircase in the world.

The magnificent front façade.

There are many other magnificent rooms and features of the Glasgow City Chambers that I have not yet been able to photograph. The building is open to visitors for a guided tours twice daily on normal working days, although you should check prior to visiting to ensure opening times. I might pay a visit myself very soon.

These photographs were taken in November 2011 using a Fujifilm S5 DSLR. Shot in RAW format and processed in Photoshop CS2 ACR2.4

All the photographs were taken by Scottish photographer Norman Young and are copyright ©. Please respect copyright.