BANK OF CHINA
HONG KONG
Architects and Engineers-Messrs. Palmer & Turner, Hong Kong.
Construction Managers-Messrs. George Wimpey & Co., Ltd. of London, England.
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The new Bank of China Building from the Hong Kong Cricket Club ground.
ITUATED at the junction of 'Queen's Road and Des Voeux Road, the new Bank of China Build- ing is seventeen storeys above ground and the total height is 240 feet,
This great modern building is about 20 feet higher than the ad- jacent Hongkong & Shanghai Bank Building, and is an impressive land- mark visible from the distant main land.
The site itself is an island in shape a truncated triangle with public roads on all sides, the area is ap- proximately 15,000 square feet and slopes from south to north Queen's Road being 8 feet higher than Des Voeux Road.
The frame of the building is structural steel; this carries the many floors of this multi-storeyed building and the outside walls which are of
locally quarried granite stone with brick backing. The design is modern, decoration has been re- stricted to important features such as the Queen's Road and Des Voeux Road Entrances to the Bank and carving or enrichment on the facades has been designed to impart a modern but also Chinese character building. Two traditional Chinese to the outside appearance of the
Lions carved out of granite flank the main Des Voeux Road Entrance, and a further 2 smaller Lions at the West Side where provision has been made for a possible future entrance.
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The prototype of these Lions are those at Tsai Hsia Shan, Nanking, which date back to the Six-dynasties, and were erected about A. D. 500, therefore they are far older than the florid Peking Lions. The prototype has been referred to in the books of re- ference as some of the finest exam- ples of Chinese sculpture.
They have the simplicity and clean lines of modern sculpture and are therefore most suitable for the posit- ion they occupy as part of a modern building.
Internally the most suitable and hard wearing materials have been used. Great thought has been given to the selection of the various mar- bles used to line the walls and
counters.
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