Royal Liver Building | |
---|---|
Royal Liver Building, Pier Head, Liverpool
|
|
Alternative names |
|
General information | |
Type | Commercial offices |
Location | Pier Head, Liverpool, England, United Kingdom |
Coordinates | 53°24′21″N 2°59′45″W / 53.4058°N 2.9958°WCoordinates: 53°24′21″N 2°59′45″W / 53.4058°N 2.9958°W |
Current tenants | Royal Liver Assurance |
Construction started | 1908 |
Completed | 1911 |
Cost | £800,000 |
Owner | Corestate Capital, Farhad Moshiri |
Height | |
Architectural | 98.2 m (322 ft) |
Roof | 50.9 m (167 ft) |
Technical details | |
Lifts/elevators | 12 |
Design and construction | |
Architect | Walter Aubrey Thomas |
Main contractor | Edmund Nuttall Limited |
References | |
The Royal Liver Building /ˈlaɪvər/ is a Grade I listed building in Liverpool, England. It is located at the Pier Head and along with the neighbouring Cunard Building and Port of Liverpool Building is one of Liverpool's Three Graces, which line the city's waterfront. It is also part of Liverpool's UNESCO-designated World Heritage Maritime Mercantile City.
Opened in 1911, the building is the purpose-built home of the Royal Liver Assurance group, which had been set up in the city in 1850 to provide locals with assistance related to losing a wage-earning relative. One of the first buildings in the world to be built using reinforced concrete, the Royal Liver Building stands at 98.2 m (322 ft) tall to the top of the spires, and 50.9 m (167 ft) to the main roof. The Royal Liver Building is now however only the joint-fourth tallest structure in the City of Liverpool, having been overtaken in height by West Tower, Radio City Tower and Liverpool Cathedral.
Today the Royal Liver Building is one of the most recognisable landmarks in the city of Liverpool and is home to two fabled Liver Birds that watch over the city and the sea. Legend has it that were these two birds to fly away, then the city would cease to exist.