See all Attractions in Aberdeen
Granite Architecture.
Aberdeen, Aberdeen City, UKAbout
Granite Architecture. Aberdeen's granite buildings form one of the most celebrated cityscapes in Britain, with beautiful and architecturally significant buildings literally everywhere, especially in the city centre. However, some (particularly on Union Street) are now in need of restoration, much as the New Town of Edinburgh was before its restoration in the late 20th century. The Wikipedia article on Architecture in Aberdeen gives a good introduction [18] but here are a few to get you started as you walk around the city centre. The newly-restored Marischal College on Broad Street, displays what poet John Betjeman called "tower on tower, forests of pinnacles, a group of palatial buildings rivalled only by the Houses of Parliament at Westminster". Then try the Town House (i.e. city hall) on Union Street, with its confident Victorian tower and street frontage. The Salvation Army Citadel on the Castlegate is an excellent example of the Scottish Baronial style, with its fairy-tale turrets, while a walk up (and down) Union Street with its mile of impressive granite buildings is a must. As you walk along Union Street, look up; the architecture is often not visible from street-level. Unlike other grand streets in the UK (such as Grey Street in Newcastle or the Royal Crescent in Bath), but like Princes Street in Edinburgh, each building on Union Street is different to the next in stature and architectural style. You will see a wide range of architectural styles, from highly ornamented to robust and Scottish-looking. Then, on Rosemount Viaduct, the cluster of His Majesty's Theatre, St. Mark's Church and the Central Library form a widely-praised trio. City bookstores and the Central Library carry books about Aberdeen's architecture, such as The Granite Mile by Diane Morgan (2008) on the architecture of Union Street.
