Bankgebouw, Turfsingel 3 A

English translation

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Description

Introduction

BANK BUILDING, situated in the closed southern facade of the Turfsingel, consisting largely of older buildings, built in 1905 on behalf of the Groninger Crediet- en Handelsbank with caretaker's dwelling designed by Groningen architect A.Th. van Elmpt in Art Nouveau style. The building is currently in use as business premises with upper dwelling.

Description

The imposing building is erected on a rectangular plan and consists of a basement with three storeys under a flat roof. The front facade is finished with a cornice with substantial overhang. The front facade is five bays wide, of which the middle three bays are recessed; the basement and ground floor are recessed even more than the upper storeys. The basement and a high dado (approximately 1.20 metres) are clad with natural stone slabs. In front of the sunken basement is a wrought-iron gate with Art Nouveau motifs. The rising masonry of the front facade is built of white facing brick and reinforced with natural stone elements at structural points. The side facades, which project above the adjacent buildings, are roughly rendered. In the corner bays are worked panelled doors with decorated ironwork and high fanlights, provided with natural stone sills, corner pieces, worked lintels and high columnar mullions. In the corner bays are segmental-arch windows on the first storey and two right-angled, narrow windows on the second storey. The left bay is closed by a brick balustrade; the right has a low tower-like upper storey extension with two windows and a pyramidal roof. The corners of these bays are rounded. The recessed middle section of three bays wide contains on the ground floor three large round-arch windows with stained-glass fanlights and curved glazing bars. The overhang to the upper storey is supported by an architrave on consoles which rest on worked capitals, which crown the wall piers between the ground floor windows. All of this is executed in decoratively formed natural stone. The segmental-arch upper storey windows have natural stone sills, the middle one also a natural stone corner piece. The second storey projects slightly again. The transition is supported by a dentil moulding below the wall piers with natural stone consoles. The second storey windows are right-angled and have fanlights with small glazing bars. The rear facade is rendered and shows the original layout; French doors on the ground floor and on the upper storeys balconies with wrought-iron railings and right-angled T-windows. Internally still of importance the hall with white marble dado and worked wooden draught door, the wooden staircase, the suite of rooms on one of the upper storeys with ornamented stucco ceilings with leaf and floral motifs in Art Nouveau style and black marble fireplaces, a pair of coloured stained-glass windows on the landings and various wooden panelled doors with original surrounds.

Assessment

Bank building, designed in a style with characteristics of the renewal styles around 1900 designed by Groningen architect A.Th. van Elmpt, of general interest by virtue of its cultural-historical and architectural-historical value because of the exceptional architectural quality of the design, the careful and craftsman-executed choice of materials and because of the architectural integrity of the exterior and interior (components). Moreover the building occupies an important place in the oeuvre of the architect. Furthermore the building forms a valuable architectural element in the southern facade of the Turfsingel in Groningen.