Royal Liver Building

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Royal Liver Building

The Royal Liver Building - Matthew Street Festival 2006

Liver birds tower over Dale Street and the Guildhall

The Royal Liver Building as seen from the Pier Head

The Royal Liver Building (pronounced ˈlaɪvə) is one of the city of Liverpool's most recognisable landmarks. It stands at 90 metres (295 feet) and has 13 floors. Since its completion in 1911, it has overlooked the River Mersey from its waterfront location on the Pier Head and forms one of the 'Three Graces' along with the Port of Liverpool Building and the Cunard Building. It was designed in 1908 by Walter Aubrey Thomas, built by Edmund Nuttall and is one of the earliest examples of multi-storey reinforced concrete construction.^[1] This is reflected in the building's Grade I listed building status.

The building is crowned by a pair of clock towers: as a ship passed along the river, mariners could tell the time from these. The clock faces are 25ft in diameter, larger than those of London's famous landmark, Big Ben, holding the distinction of being the largest electronically driven clocks in the UK.^[2] They were originally named George clocks, due to being started at the precise time that King George V was crowned on 22 June 1911.^[3] In 1953, electronic chimes were installed to serve as a memorial to the members of the Royal Liver Friendly Society who died during the two World Wars. During hours of darkness, the clock dials are illuminated.

Atop each tower stand the mythical Liver Birds, designed by Carl Bernard Bartels. Popular legend has it that while one giant bird looks out over the city to protect its people, the other bird looks out to sea at the new sailors coming in to port. Alternatively, local legend states one Liver Bird is male, looking inland to see if the pubs are open, whilst the other is female, looking out to sea to see if there are any handsome sailors coming up the river. It is also said that, if one of the birds were to fly away the city of Liverpool would cease to exist, thus adding to the mystery of the birds. As a result, both birds are chained to the domes upon which they stand.

The building remains the head office for the Royal Liver Friendly Society. It is reputed to be the Gothic inspiration for both the Manhattan Municipal Building in New York and the Seven Sisters in Moscow.

[edit] References

^ Liverpool World Heritage City: Royal Liver Building. Liverpool City Council. Retrieved 1 February 2008
^ Port Cities: The Royal Liver Building. E. Chambré Hardman Archive. Retrieved 1 February 2008
^ Coast Walk: Stage 4. BBC Liverpool (21 July 2005). Retrieved 1 February 2008