Harkers is a pub in the city centre of

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

, in England. The building was designed by

George Townsend Andrews George Townsend Andrews (19 December 1804 – 29 December 1855) was an English architect born in Exeter. He is noted for his buildings designed for George Hudson's railways, especially the York and North Midland Railway. Andrews' architect's p ...

as the headquarters of the

Yorkshire Insurance Company The Yorkshire Insurance Company was an English insurance company. History The company was founded in 1824, in York, as the Yorkshire Fire and Life Insurance Company. Its objects were initially "to effect insurance against loss by fire and on l ...

. It was completed in 1847, and lies on

St Helen's Square St Helen's Square is an open space in the city centre of York, England. History During the Roman era, Eboracum's south-western gate, the ''porta praetoria'', lay where the square is now. Until the mid-18th century much of the space was occup ...

, at its corner with

Lendal Lendal is a street in the city centre of York, in England. History The street was first mentioned in the 1380s, when it was known as Aldeconyngstrete (Old Coney Street). However, by 1641, it had become known as "Lendal", a contraction of "St ...

. It was

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

in 1968. In the 1990s, it was converted into a pub. The pub is owned by the

Mitchells & Butlers Mitchells & Butlers plc (also referred to as "M&B") runs circa 1,784 managed pubs, bars and restaurants throughout the United Kingdom. The company's headquarters are in Birmingham, England. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange an ...

group. It was renovated in 2022. The design of the building is inspired by the

Palazzo Farnese Palazzo Farnese () or Farnese Palace is one of the most important High Renaissance palaces in Rome. Owned by the Italian Republic, it was given to the French government in 1936 for a period of 99 years, and currently serves as the French e ...

in Rome. It is a sandstone building of two storeys, plus a basement and attic. Its front to St Helen's Square is five bays wide, with an additional bay being an entrance arch to Breary's Court. The main entrance has a

Doric order The Doric order is one of the three orders of ancient Greek and later Roman architecture; the other two canonical orders were the Ionic and the Corinthian. The Doric is most easily recognized by the simple circular capitals at the top of t ...

porch, up five stone steps, with double doors. There is a prominent frieze under the cornice, reading "YORKSHIRE INSURANCE COMPANY ESTABLISHED MDCCXXIIII". The Lendal front is also of five bays and of similar design, but all the windows are blocked. Inside, the original interior survives, including a staircase with a cast iron balustrade, a

mahogany Mahogany is a straight- grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus ''Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Universit ...

counter, doors and panelling, and plasterwork including a cornice. The boardroom on the first floor has a fireplace in the 18th century style. The railings in front of the building are also original and form part of the listing.

References

{{coord, 53.96018, -1.08475, format=dms, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title Buildings and structures completed in 1847 Grade II listed pubs in York St Helen's Square George Townsend Andrews buildings