Queen Victoria Building from the outside
by Skyring, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:QVB.JPG, and available in the GNU Free Documentation License
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The Queen Victoria Building, or QVB, is a grand Victorian building located in the heart of the Sydney central business district. It was built in the elaborate Romanesque Revival architectural style. It was completed in 1898 and named the Queen Victoria Building as a monument to the long-reigning monarch. The Queen Victoria Building measures 190 metres long by 30 wide, filling an entire city block, bounded by George, Market, York and Druitt Streets. Presently Queen Victoria Building serves as a shopping centre.
The QVB stand stands on the site of the the George Street Markets. It was designed by George McRae in the Romanesque style. The construction of the QVB allowed a great number of skilled craftsmen to be hired who were otherwise out of work due to a severe recession at that time.
When the Queen Victoria Building was completed, it had coffee shops, showrooms and even a concert hall. It provided a comfortable business environment for tradesmen such as tailors, mercers, hairdressers, and florists and blackface minstrels. The Sydney's needs evolved, changes were made to the building. At one time the concert hall became a municipal library and offices for Sydney City Council.
Over time, the Queen Victoria Building began to deteriorate and, as recently as 1959, there was even calls for its demolition. Nevertheless it was saved and restored between 1984 and 1986, and today houses a wide variety of mostly upmarket boutiques and "brand-name" shops.
Interior of the Queen Victoria Building
by Mike Switzerland and used under GNU Free Documentation License
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