By way of a follow-up to the previous post about Somerville the Grocer, it's worth highlighting a little piece of architectural detail that is very familiar, as we walk over it all the time. The Leven Road shop still has its original panel of prismatic lights on the pavement in front of the shop window. These were designed to allow sunlight into the cellar below before the days of affordable electric lights. The prism shape on the underside (see examples below) allows light to be reflected sideways under the main building rather than just straight down. It may also have been that goods could be delivered through the panels flaps (see image further below).
The Lundin Links panels were manufactured by T. Hyatt & Co of Farringdon Road London. Over time some prisms have become cracked and others damaged through wear and tear - being replaced with tiles and cement as the natural light is no longer relied upon to illuminate the space below. The prismatic light concept featured in many architectural products of the time - some examples of which are illustrated in the advert below.