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The Normandie 诺曼底大楼
Year: 1924
International Savings Society Apartments/ The Normandie A strong example of the neoclassical style of the French Renaissance period, and built for the French Firm, The International Savings Society, its name was later changed to the “Normandie”. The building is located at No. 1836 to 1858, Middle Huaihai Road, formerly Avenue Joffre. The building was designed in October 1923, and completed in 1924. The eight-storey steel-concrete structure was the first apartment building with single loaded corridors in Shanghai.
The layout of the building is wedged shape, corresponding to its triangular site,. While the façade was divided into three phases, horizontally, the ground floor on the south side has a covered walkway with a continuous semi-arched arcade to the street. The ground and second floor were treated as the base, with ashlar wall surfacing, while the third to seventh floors, as a middle section, were faced with unadorned red brickwork. The ashlar surfaced top floor corresponded with the base. The cantilevered balconies served as markers between the three distinct vertical sections. Carved stones occur in every arch on the ground floor; vase-shaped stone balusters occur to the balconies; and classical pediment decorations occur on the window lintels, being typical decoration of the period. Most apartments face south with flexible configurations varying from one to four rooms per apartment, and are well ventilated.
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