Bank of Ireland

Attached five-bay three-storey bank, built 1927, with ashlar limestone bankfront to ground floor of front elevation. Pitched roof with rendered chimneystack, cast-iron rainwater goods, render copings to gables and rendered parapet wall with heavy render cornice, frieze with boss motif decoration, and architrave. Painted rendered walls, ends slightly recessed, with moulded cornice to ground floor doubling as eaves course to first floor windows, and plinth with moulded coping. Square-headed openings having one-over-one pane timber sliding sash windows, with moulded render surrounds to upper floors, and carved limestone surrounds to ground floor openings. Second floor windows having painted stone sills and decorative cast-iron railings, and those to first floor having moulded architraves, friezes and cornices. Bankfront has carved limestone architrave, frieze and cornice. Square-headed door openings to each end of façade, with carved limestone surrounds, timber panelled doors, and with cut limestone steps to eastern doorway.

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries a great many banks were built in Ireland, and a particular style of architecture became associated with them,predominantly classically inspired. This bank is a fine example of such a style. The five-bay form of the building, with entrances to either end, is typical of banks of the time and the formality of classical architecture lends the structure an air of gravity and authority. The carved surrounds to the openings add a decorative element to the façade, enriching the overall appearance of the building. Sited on Fermoy's main street is presents a strong and imposing façade.