Doors create thresholds – sometimes simply entranceways to commerce, medical help, or the dreaded dental nurse. In other instances they give access to art, religion and entertainment.

These are twenty-eight distinct doors around Wellington that make you stop and look.

They celebrate the architectural variety of the city, through the decades from 1885 to 1940, when designers used doorways as opportunities to accentuate building style.

The designs are arranged chronologically – from Victorian, Edwardian, and Arts and Crafts to interwar Neo-Georgian, Stripped Classical and Art Deco. 

There is a glossary of architectural terms and a map at the end, with more information available on Wellington City Council’s list of heritage buildings.