Lothian House

Being stuck at the traffic lights on Lothian Road for quite a while I looked around and gazed up.  For the first time I really noticed Lothian House!  

This is an art deco building from 1935 that originally housed government offices.  It was built on Port Hopetoun Basin where the Edinburgh Union canal ended up until 1922.   It was then waste ground until Lothian House was built. It's amazing to think that passenger boats docked within 500 metres of the Usher Hall!

The decorative Pilkington panels show the four seasons (one with blossom, one a rainbow, one falling leaves and fourthly rain) and the four main trades in Edinburgh (a builder, brewer, printer and mill-worker).   

In 1988 the building was converted to residental flats.