SE3033 : Thornton's Building, Briggate, Leeds
taken 6 years ago, near to Leeds, England
The terms terracotta and faience can be used more or less interchangeably for the structural and decorative ceramic material used extensively on buildings from about 1880 to the 1930s. Faience is more generally applied to the type which has high glaze, often multicoloured, as featured for example on The Grand Arcade, and The Three Legs pub.
The material is similar to the denser bricks developed in the 19th century and has a generally impermeable surface compared with softer stones and common bricks. Compared with stone, where every stone had to be individually carved (even when done mechanically), terracotta decoration could be produced in numbers from a single mould.
The presence of large numbers of buildings using the material in Leeds is connected with the fact that one of the major British manufacturers was the Burmantofts pottery and brickworks in the eastern suburbs of the City. Around 1900 Burmantoft developed a very pale version, in imitation of white marble, which was given the trade name 'Marmo'. As well as being used for buildings in the more 'Rococo' style of the early 1900s (e.g. Scottish Union and National Insurance Company building on Park Row) it was much favoured in the Art Deco period for major cinema and shop frontages.
Listed buildings and structures are officially designated as being of special architectural, historical or cultural significance. There are over half a million listed structures in the United Kingdom, covered by around 375,000 listings.
Listed status is more commonly associated with buildings or groups of buildings, however it can cover many other structures, including bridges, headstones, steps, ponds, monuments, walls, phone boxes, wrecks, parks, and heritage sites, and in more recent times a road crossing (Abbey Road) and graffiti art (Banksy 'Spy-booth') have been included.
In England and Wales there are three main listing designations;
Grade I (2.5%) - exceptional interest, sometimes considered to be internationally important.
Grade II* (5.5%) - particularly important buildings of more than special interest.
Grade II (92%) - nationally important and of special interest.
There are also locally listed structures (at the discretion of local authorities) using A, B and C designations.
In Scotland three classifications are also used but the criteria are different. There are around 47,500 Listed buildings.
Category A (8%)- generally equivalent to Grade I and II* in England and Wales
Category B (51%)- this appears generally to cover the ground of Grade II, recognising national importance.
Category C (41%)- buildings of local importance, probably with some overlap with English Grade II.
In Northern Ireland the criteria are similar to Scotland, but the classifications are:
Grade A (2.3%)
Grade B+ (4.7%)
Grade B (93%)
Read more at Wikipedia Link