A shop refurbishment in Edinburgh uncovered the forgotten interior of a fishmongers and butchers established when Edward VII was on the throne.
Work to transform the former Edinburgh Golf Centre at 58 Dalry Road into offices has revealed hand-painted tiles, antique iron fittings, and 19th century ornamental cornicing that has been obscured for decades behind modern panels and false walls.
The tiling, which is understood to date from the Edwardian era, carries artistic depictions of fish, poultry and other animals.
Records show that a fishmongers and butchers run by a Mr George Young was established on the site in 1909, while a newspaper advertisement dating from the 1920s lists a selection of the Dalry shop's produce, including deep sea cod, fillet haddocks, lemon soles and even rabbit meat.
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A passer by captured images of the vintage interior on Wednesday night. Sharing them on social media, @Colin_Fergus tweeted: "Lowered ceilings and false walls stripped out of this shop unit on Dalry Rd, hope they keep the best bits in the refurb."
One Twitter user commented: "I still refuse to understand why anyone would put in false ceilings and walls to hide this."
Edinburgh Live spoke to a worker on site at the former golfing supplies store, who told us they had been busy doing work there for the past fortnight. They said they had been pleasantly surprised to discover the historic interior features that lay behind the modern shop fittings.
Original windows to the rear of the tenement property have also been discovered and will be brought back into use.
The worker explained that the shop, which had been home to the Edinburgh Golfing Centre for 47 years, is to be transformed into an office space for a company specialising in the distribution of coffee machines.
We have also been told that the new occupants of the premises has plans to preserve the original features and is keen to make repairs where necessary, with water ingress having caused damage to a portion of the ceiling.
The Edinburgh Golfing Centre closed down at the end of October 2022 due to the retirement of the owners. In a social media post, they thanked their loyal customers for all their support over the years.
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