Survey Data
Reg No
50930146
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Architectural, Artistic
Original Use
House
In Use As
Office
Date
1815 - 1835
Coordinates
316477, 232838
Date Recorded
28/08/2015
Date Updated
--/--/--
Description
Attached two-bay four-storey over basement former townhouse, built c. 1825, as a pair with No. 17 (50930145). Two-storey over basement hip-roofed return to rear (east) elevation. Now in use as office. M-profiled roof, hipped to north, concealed by brick parapet with ashlar granite eaves and moulded granite coping. Pair of shouldered brick chimneystacks to south party wall with lipped clay pots. Red brick walling laid in Flemish bond, rusticated ashlar granite walling to ground floor, rusticated walls to basement beneath granite stringcourse. Smooth rendered walling to rear (east) elevation. Square-headed window openings with brick voussoirs, patent reveals and granite sills. Decorative iron balconettes to first and second floor openings. Largely six-over-six timber sliding sash windows without horns (diminishing in height) and ten-over-ten to basement. Wrought-iron guard rails to second floor openings and iron balconettes to first floor. Round-headed door opening with moulded rendered reveals and recessed surround with Greek-Doric portico having plain frieze and moulded cornice supported on fluted Doric columns, with petal fanlight and raised-and-field timber panelled door. Granite entrance platform with a cast-iron boot scraper, approached by two bull-nosed granite steps and flanked by cast-iron railings with decorative arrow finials over granite plinth, enclosing basement well to south. Replacement mild-steel steps to basement with plainly detailed replacement door beneath entrance platform. Coal-hole cover to pavement. Replacement mews building to rear plot, concealed by roughly coursed and squared limestone wall to Lad Lane Upper with replacement granite coping. Wall pierced by square-headed pedestrian opening with replacement timber door and elliptical-headed carriage-arch with tooled ashlar limestone voussoirs and surrounds, having timber sheeted doors.
Appraisal
A fine Georgian-style former townhouse, characterised by restrained external detailing and well-balanced proportions. The fine Doric doorcase and fanlight, cast-iron railings and granite steps enrich and enhance the street setting. Although the streetscape is largely cohesive in appearance, slight variations between the groups of houses on Fitzwilliam Place is illustrative of the incremental nature of speculative development during this period. Developed in conjunction with the east and south sides of Fitzwilliam Square, the eastern side of Fitzwilliam Place was completed by 1836, with the exception of five houses to the south-end, which were built c. 1840.