The Wool Exchange symbolises the great wealth and importance which Bradford had gained from the wool trade by the mid 19th century. It was completed in 1857 to the design of Lockwood and Mawson, won in open competition, and the foundation stone was laid in 1864 by the then Prime Minister, Lord Palmerston. It is ornate 'Venetian Gothic' in style with decorative roof parapets and pinnacles. Between the ground floor arches are carved portraits of notable people.