We were in Edinburgh on Saturday and walked along Comely Bank Road, near Stockbridge but going west.

I’d always thought the houses there were in thirties style but since I usually drive along there hadn’t noticed the corner shop fronts.

This is a close up on the frontage of the shop which corners on Comely Bank Road and Learmonth Grove. Its deco features are obvious.

Below is the corner of Comely Bank Road and Learmonth Avenue. The shop in Learmonth Avenue (Shaw’s Fine Meats) still has thirties style windows.

Next is part of Learmonth Avenue in a view from the opposite side from the above.

Clearly thirties. Note the long vertical windows on the stairwells. (Though the shops shown here have been “modernised”.)

This is one of the vertical windows on Comely Bank Road itself. I photographed this one because it’s been painted green.

A couple more photos from Saturday are in my Edinburgh Art Deco flickr set.

Who’d have thought this:-

(which I have featured before) would be on a postcard?

Don’t forget Writers’ Bloc at Word Power Books this Sunday (14^th Aug.)

Also on the Writers’ Bloc website is a list of those members who are gigging at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe or other doing other events in August.

Some are individual efforts; others are Bloc ensemble events such as at Havers and Blethers on Fri 19^th Aug and Electric Lit Orchestra on Tue 23^rd Aug.

I don’t know exactly how many Antony Gormley statues there are in total in the Water of Leith, though I have now seen at least four.

The latest two I photographed last Saturday.

This one is in the water by St Mark’s Park and was taken from the footbridge you can see in the next one.

It’s quite a nice footbridge. Pity about the plastic on the bank. They’re doing some shoring up work I think.

The last is right at the end of the Water of Leith. The pier is hard by Ocean Terminal shopping centre. The Royal Yacht Britannia is 90^o to the left of where I took the photo from.

On our stroll to Leith docks on Saturday I noticed this building from the pathway by the Water of Leith. So we climbed up to Great Junction Street and I took a few photos. (Yes I know this is in Leith really but we’ll stretch a point.)

The State Cinema was opened in 1938, turned into a bingo hall in 1972 and later became the Babylon night club. It was B-listed in 1995.

This first picture was taken from the bridge over the Water of Leith.

Here we have typical deco styling: horizontals,verticals and also trianguloid bits. Note the painting on the bridge parapet. It’s a bit deco too.

It’s a pity the building has fallen into disuse. On the Scottish cinemas website it looks a bit less dilapidated.

There is a plan to refurbish it though. (The cinema parts at the back will go but the entrance building will stay.)

The pyramidal roof on the square tower looks a bit odd but judging by the old photo in the Scottish cinemas link above it seems to be original.

On Saturday we walked the Water of Leith from Arboretum Avenue all the way to the Port of Leith.

On the way there we saw this heron which may be one of the ones we have seen in the Water of Leith before. We were puzzling what it got to eat as we could see no sign of fish in the river whenever we had a suitable view.

On the way back…

We saw the heron looking intently at the bank, then stalking slowly and deliberately towards the river’s side. When close in its neck started to sway sinuously the way I suppose a snake’s does. It stopped, then started the neck sway thing again.

Then it pounced. Quickly.

There was now a small mammal in its mouth, a vole or mouse probably. I scrabbled to get a picture. I hope you can make out the mammal.

This is a few seconds later.

Not much later the mammal had been completely swallowed.

Now we know what it eats….

Nature red in tooth and claw.

Not to mention beak.

These photos were taken about a month or so ago.

This is a panorama of Edinburgh from the Botanic Gardens with Arthur’s Seat prominent towards the left and the Castle to the right.

This heron was in the Water of Leith as we walked back from the Botanics. It may or may not be the same one we have seen before.

This is one of Antony Gormley‘s sculptures. It is embedded into the tarmac in the middle of the pedestrian entrance from Belford Road into the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art.

A while back I was in Edinburgh again and stopped off in Princes Street Gardens.

The bandstand there is Deco, having some aspects in common with the stage at the rear of the Glen Pavilion in Dunfermline.

The bandstand’s Deco-ness shows especially in the side view.

These Deco pavilions/huts are built into the bank which backs onto Princes Street itself.

There are two more photos on my Flickr site in my Edinburgh Art Deco set of pictures.

I’ve not done one of these Art Deco posts for a while, so it’s about time.

This is the Capital Building, on the corner of St Andrew’s Square and George Street, Edinburgh.

I wasn’t sure it is true Art Deco. It certainly has elements – horizontals and verticals – but looks more modern. The picture is a stitch of two to show both street facades. Below is a close up of the top of the entrance.

Statues above the door on Capital building, on corner of St Andrew’s Square and George Street, Edinburgh.

These have a bit of Art Deco look about them but could have been 1950s.

The building had a for sale/to let sign on it when I took the photo. This link (the property consultants) shows a view from further back than mine.

This site suggests the original was built in the 1930s and the window replacements were carried out to be as close to the originals as possible by Critall!

Here’s a closer view of the frontage of St Andrew’s House. (See six posts ago.) Floating right is a side view of the column behind the flagpole with its very Deco light fitting:-

Below is a detail from the right hand roof line, showing nice trianguloid embellishments. Right is one of the tall side windows (the easterly one) complete with pigeons:-

This is the view from the East:-

The East gateway. The circular motif echoes the porthole window in the building:-

Another angle of the East gateway:-

East doorway. The repeated circular motif would be more apparent if the outer door were closed:-

Coat of arms, front doorway and pillars:-

Close up of main doorway showing historical scenes/figures:-