the northern end of österlånggatan forms a discreet and informal back door to the old town; recessed in a corner of the prestigious slottsbacken it can be hard to even discover, and as the narrow northern end is squeezed between tall façades, it is easy to misinterpret the street as yet another of the many alleys. the first block is, however, flanked by two buildings worth a brief note: on the right side is the rear face of the royal coin cabinet, housing a royal collection begun in the 16th century, and on the left is number 1, a building started in 1897 and completed in 1950 to the plans of ivar tengbom (1878–1968), more famous as the architect behind stockholm school of economics and stockholm concert hall – the windows facing telegrafgränd, the first alley, gives a clear idea of what the building looked like at the time, in sharp contrast to the 18th-century stone portal on the opposite side of the alley.