The dome dominated the interior of the Main Building at the International Exhibition of 1888 and it was a popular meeting place for visitors.
The ground floor housed a post office, bank, telephone exchange and Royal Reception Rooms. Bright colours decorated the iron work. Scriptural texts adorned the arches leading to the various avenues.
Figure subjects, allegorical representations of Industry, Science, Art and Agriculture, were painted in panels on the piers of the dome. These greatly enhanced the reputations of then unknown young local artists George Henry, John Lavery, James Guthrie and Edward Walton. Above the figures were the armorial bearings of Britain, France, Germany and the USA.
Reference: Mitchell Library, GC f606.4 (1888)
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Libraries and Archives
Keywords:
arches, armorial bearings, artists, banks, domes, exhibitions, International Exhibition, 1888, post offices, Royal Reception Rooms, telephone exchanges