Also known as: Bank of Montreal Main Branch Built: 1845-1847 Designed by: John Wells Renovated: 1859 Renovated: 1885-1886 by Taylor, Gordon & Bousfield Renovated: 1901-1905 Type: Office Building Stories: 1 Location: 119 rue Saint-Jacques, Montréal, Canada
Description by Wayne Lorentz A fantastic piece of neo-classical architecture demonstrating the history and longevity of both Montreal and the bank which erected the building.
The Bank of Montreal was founded by local Scottish merchants, and like most bank buildings, this one is intended to convey strength, longevity, and safety. This is actually the second Bank of Montreal building, as the institution outgrew its original headquarters just 25 years after its founding.
This building's design is inspired by the Pantheon in Rome, and like the original has suffered because of pollution. In the 1970's the tops of the six Corinthian columns were replaced because they were eaten away by pollution. The ones you see there today are aluminum duplicates.
The interior, too, is not original, but at least it's old. It was done in 1905 by Stanford White of McKim, Mead and White. The New Yorker gave the building a banking hall designed to resemble a Roman basilica, sporting dark green columns separating a white marble floor and light-green ceiling. Above the square ceiling is the new low dome (erected in 1903), so often missed when this building is viewed from the street. The renovation almost doubled the amount of useable space on the inside of the building.
Though the original building was beautiful to look at, it was not without its problems. Just 12 years after it was completed, it was discovered that the dome was leaking and seriously damaged what was then the building's second floor. It was actually feared that the dome could collapse into the bank below so the dome was removed entirely while repairs were made.
Unfortunately, this building does not get the showcase it deserves. It is tucked into a corner of the Place-d'Armes, rather than being in a central position on one of the flanking sides. Even though the Bank of Montreal takes up an entire city block, most tourists will miss it entirely as they have their backs turned to the bank building while admiring the Basilica of Our Lady.
The sculpture in the tympanum is the bank's coat of arms. It was carved in Scotland out of Binney stone by Sir John Steele,
This building was built on a plot of land owned by the Basilica of Our Lady and used as both a farm field and a cemetery. There was also a mill on this property which was torn down to make way for the bank building.
1845: Construction began.
1847: Construction ended.
November, 1847: The bank moved in to its new building.
1867: The sculpture on the pediment is added.
1904: Interior renovation by McKim, Mead and White was started.
1903: The new dome is put in place.
1905: The interior renovation was completed.
There is a museum of money in this building's lobby.
Ranjan Kumar Dash
Four stars.