Melbourne apartment inside 100-year-old art deco complex blends history with European-style charm

A creative apartment located in a century-old art deco Melbourne CBD building is for sale with a $850,000-$890,000 price guide.

The two-bedroom home at 418/422 Collins St is part of a 1924-built reinforced concrete complex designed by architects Graninger Little Barlow and Hawkings, which previously served as FAI Insurance headquarters.

According to the National Trust database, the address – named Temple Court – is a “substantial and impressively detailed example of the classical revival in modern architecture in Melbourne in the 1920s”.

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Temple Court’s foyer boasts a mural depicting indigenous Australians, completed by artist Mervyn Napier Waller, then aged 70, in 1963.

Waller also created the mosaics and murals at several other well-known sites including the Hall of Memory in Canberra’s Australian War Memorial, plus the Melbourne Town Hall; Bourke St’s Myer Emporium; and a circa-1932 commission by journalist and newspaper proprietor Sir Keith Murdoch at Collins St’s Newspaper House.

Galldon Real Estate’s Melbourne sales manager Vincent Duong said the 106sq m apartment featured high ceilings, a large undercover balcony and east-facing floor-to-ceiling windows framing Bank Place views.

“It’s rare to have that view and that aspect in Melbourne, especially coming from a historic and heritage building,” Mr Duong said.

“The apartment is very sizeable by apartment standards and does exude a certain European and old-world charm.”

Bank Place, a stop on Visit Victoria’s Golden Mile Heritage Walk in Melbourne’s financial district, mainly consists of architecture dating from the 1860s to the 1920s.

It’s home to one of Australia’s oldest private members’ clubs, the Savage Club, and the 140-year-old Mitre Tavern.

Mr Duong said the streets surrounding Temple Court were packed with cafes, restaurants and retailers.

“It (the apartment) does lend itself to that lifestyle, and further to that it’s in a unique position between Collins St and Little Collins St and backs onto Bank Place,” he added.

“You can get lost in that corner and it’s like you are in Europe.”

Owned by the same person for more at least a decade, the apartment is decorated with paintings and sculptures.

Mr Duong said some buyers have been keen to use the abode as a home studio.

“The floorplan lends itself to a lot of flexibility and I think it would suit someone in the arts industry,” he said.

The main bedroom has a walk-in wardrobe and a door that opens directly onto the balcony.

Other features include an European laundry and the kitchen with stainless-steel appliances and a dishwasher.

There’s also split-system airconditioning and heating in the living area and both bedrooms.

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