Probably the most photographed and well known building in Liverpool . It is located at Pier Head and stands proud
and majestic against the skyline of Liverpool
and the riverfront. The building is made of reinforced concrete and was the
first large scale building of its type. It was built in 1911 for the Royal
Liver Friendly Society. This impressive architectural masterpiece features a
pair of clock towers from which shipping could tell the time as they passed en
route along the river. The clock faces are actually larger than the clock face
of Big Ben in London Britain
A statue of a Liver Bird spreading its wings from the top of
each clock tower enhances the glory of the building and its impressive
features. The Liver Bird, the official mascot of Liverpool is a cormorant
(seaweed bird) which in bygone times could often be seen flying alongside the Mersey River
The Royal
Liver Building
In 1907 the Royal Liver Group had over 6000 employees and
given the need for larger premises the company gave the go-ahead for the
construction of a new head office. Designed by Walter Aubrey Thomas, the
foundation stone for the building was laid on 11 May 1908 and just 3 years
later on 19 July 1911, the building was officially opened by Lord Sheffield.
The building became the first major structure in Britain
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| John Chapman Canadian Pacific Liner Melita at Liverpool circa 1930 |
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
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| InsideThe Clock Tower |
On the top of the building, sat on each of the two towers
are the mythical Liver Birds, the symbol of Liverpool .
They are 18 feet tall, have a total wing span of 24 feet and are made of
copper. Local legend has it that if they fly away, Liverpool
will cease to exist. The Liver Birds are a cross between an eagle and a
cormorant (the bird of good luck to sailors). A German sculptor called Carl
Bernard Bartels, who was living in England , designed them. When the
Great War broke out, Carl Bernard Bartels was arrested as a German citizen and
imprisoned on the Isle of Man. The City of Liverpool
removed all reference to his achievements and at the end of the war, despite
having a wife in London , he was sent back to Germany .
Listed Grade I
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| The Liver Building framework being fitted with it's facia |
The Liver Building was built as the head office of the
Royal Liver Friendly Society, which had its origins as a mid-19th century
burial club. It is notable as one of Britain's
first multi-storey reinforced concrete framed buildings. Stylistically unique
in England, it is more akin to
the early tall buildings of America such as the Allegheny Court House
(1884) by H. H. Richardson and the Garrick (formerly Schiller) Theatre by Adler
and Sullivan. It has nine bays on each front and thirteen bays on the sides.
The top floor steps back behind a Doric colonnade, taking advantage of the
technical possibilities offered by its reinforced concrete structure. The roof
has turrets and domes in receding stages and the clock towers have copper Liver
Birds designed by Carl Bernard Bartels and constructed by Bromsgrove Guild. The
Bromsgrove Guild were awarded this important commission by The Royal Liver
Assurance Company who wanted two mythical Liver Birds to be mounted on the twin
towers of its new head office at the Pier Head when it opened 19 July, 1911.
Their construction presented many problems, firstly their size and the fact
that they were to be mounted 300 feet from the ground. This meant that they
would have to be constructed to withstand high winds but not be too heavy. The
birds were constructed in Bromsgrove, dismantled and then transported to
Liverpool. The statues were then re-assembled from the collection of small
pieces of copper sheeting. Standing 18 feet tall they have a total wing span of
24 feet and are made of copper. It was decided that once installed they would
be gilded and scaffolding and screening was erected to protect the men working
at this great height. One worker later said that twice as much gold-leaf blew
away as was actually applied to the birds! The two birds face away from each
other, one towards the river and the other towards the city. The poses are traditional;
the birds stand with half-upraised wings, each carrying a sprig of seaweed in
its beak. The birds are 18 ft high, their heads are 31/2 ft long, the spread of
the wings is 12 ft, their length is 10 ft and the legs are 2ft in
circumference. Their bodies and wings are of moulded and hammered copper fixed
on a steel armature. Although there are Liver Birds on many buildings in
Liverpool, it is the two which roost on top of this building that are the
biggest in the city and which to many people are the very identity of Liverpool. The chimes on the Liver
clock fell silent for more than four years due to technical problems, but in
2016 a solution was found by specialists from the Cumbrian Clock Company, who
made a digital recording of the original sound. The chimes are now relayed
through speakers on the west tower of the Liver Building, using an amplifier
and have begun chiming again.
Local legend has it that they are
a male and female pair, the female looking out to sea, watching for the seamen
to return safely home, while the male looks towards the city, to see if the
pubs are open.
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| Later stages of the construction showing the frame work for the Clock Tower |
Early in 2017 Everton’s major shareholder Farhad Moshiri joined forces with Corestate Capital to purchase the world-famous waterfront landmark. CBRE intend to refurbish some of the building’s central areas to make the building more attractive to potential tenants.
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