Manchester Unity Building

Built in 1932, the Manchester Unity Building is an Art Deco building housing twelve stories of offices, residential units, and retail spaces.

One of the great landmarks of Melbourne, the prominent building is clad in terracotta tin-glazed tiles and crowned with a turreted gothic style tower. The building was the first in Melbourne to have escalators.

The ground floor arcade features an elaborate mosaic floor, marble-faced walls, cast plaster ceiling panels, decorative metal framed shop fronts, and copper plated elevator doors.

The building is perhaps most notable for its eleventh floor former offices and boardroom of Manchester Unity, which have been painstakingly restored to their former glory. The boardroom table was built on site in 1932 and is nearly six metres long. The top is finished with a rosewood veneer, rosewood inlay border, and a moulded and carved edge.

Tours of the building are available and can be booked online.