The European Central Bank (ECB) is having new premises built in Frankfurt near the River Main and is running an archetectural competition to see who will design it.

It is inconceivable that the building will not include stonework so it just remains to be seen how much of which stones.

More than 300 architects from 31 countries applied to be included in the competition and 80 of them have been selected to present designs. Many of the names are predictable - from the UK Foster & Partners, David Chipperfield, RHWL, Richard Rogers, etc. A few newcomers have been included, but none from the UK.

In a foreword to the competition details that will be given to the architects, ECB president Willem Duisberg says: "The design of our future premises should reflect the values we regard as essential to our activities. We are committed to transparency, integrity, excellence and efficiency."