Old Government Buildings, Wellington

Old Government Buildings
The Old Government Buildings seen from the front right
Map
General information
Architectural styleNeo-Renaissance
Location55 Lambton Quay, Wellington, New Zealand
Coordinates41°16′46″S 174°46′41″E / 41.279484°S 174.777975°E / -41.279484; 174.777975
Current tenantsVictoria University of Wellington Faculty of Law
Construction started1875
Completed1876
LandlordDepartment of Conservation
Technical details
Floor count4
Design and construction
Architect(s)William Clayton
Designated2 July 1982
Reference no.37
A crowd on ANZAC Day next to the Wellington cenotaph with the sun rising over the Old Government Building

New Zealand's Old Government Buildings sit on the Government Buildings Historic Reserve, on Lambton Quay in central Wellington. The buildings were completed in 1876 on land reclaimed from Wellington Harbour to house the young New Zealand Government and its public service.

The building now houses the Victoria University of Wellington's Law School. It is classified as a Category 1 historic building by Heritage New Zealand.[1]

Until 1998, the building was the second-largest wooden building in the world (after Tōdai-ji in Nara, Japan).[2][failed verification]

  1. ^ "Government Buildings (former)". New Zealand Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero. Heritage New Zealand. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
  2. ^ Historic Government Buildings Department of Conservation