Description

CHIPPENHAM

ST9273SW ST MARY STREET
930-1/10/185 (West side)
25/04/50 No.15
St Mary House

GV II*

House, now offices. Late C15/early C16, extended and refronted
in early C18 (datestone 1717 above doorway). Limestone rubble
with freestone quoins and dressings, stone slate roof, hipped
to the C18 south block, which has 2 hipped gables with stone
slate cheeks, ashlar stacks to gable ends and one lateral
stack to left of centre of the C16 block.
PLAN: open hall range and inner room survive from late
medieval house, which probably originally had a front lateral
stack to hall which was ceiled over and had rear stair turret
built in late C16; left-hand (south) parlour block built in
early C18 with front and rear stacks.
EXTERIOR: 2 storeys; 3+1-window range with early C18 block
making cross-wing to left. Earlier 3-window block has 6/6-pane
sash windows (mostly late C20), those to the 1st floor at
eaves level, 2 to the ground floor right with timber lintels,
those to the right of the stack have plain freestone
surrounds. The stack is at least of late C16 date, and has
coved cornice, the flue above rebuilt in C18 in ashlar. To the
left of the stack is a hood on carved brackets to a mid/late
C18 6-panel door with a late C19 3/3-pane sash window above
and oval plaque with GL/1717 in relief lettering; coved eaves
cornice of early C18 date, which is continued around
projecting early C18 block which has mostly late C20 sashes
set in moulded stone architraves with cornices to ground
floor.
To the rear a curved wall to a central stair turret (placed
between hall and inner room) has a chamfered loophole.
6/6-pane sash window to the left over a C20 door with a
concrete lintel. To the right of the turret are paired late
C20 6/6-pane sash windows and the range to the right of that
has a rendered and timber-framed gable (rebuilt late C20) with
a C20 casement window above a C17 ashlar Tudor arch, now with
a C20 Gothic glazed window.
Left-return wall (to south) of early C18 block has coved eaves
cornice and bracketed gutter; moulded architraves to 4 tall
late C20 sash windows at 1st-floor level; a central stair
window between floors and 2 ground-floor windows to the left
also have cornices. To the right of centre a similar
architrave now has French windows and to the far right is a
blind window in a plain architrave with painted glazing bars.
Hipped dormers with 2-light casements and stone slates to
cheeks. Stack and blocked 2-light stone-mullioned window to
rear.
INTERIOR: 5-bay late medieval roof; the roof over hall divided
into 2+1 bays, the left-hand bay over the original through
passage being originally closed off from the 2-bay hall, with
windbraces to 2 tiers of in-line butt purlins with
diagonally-set ridge purlin and central truss having chamfered
arch braces to cranked collar; 2 bays over inner room not
inspected in detail but collar trusses with left-hand king
post noted. In the late C16, the hall was ceiled over and fine
moulded and quartered ground-floor beams survive from this
period; the 1st floor had an early C18 barrel-vaulted plaster
ceiling built beneath the arch-braced trusses, with
rope-moulded ribs with urn stops beneath trusses. Mid C19
fireplace to ground floor, late C18 fireplace with fluted
frieze above. Stair turret has timber winder stairs with C16
doorway opening out onto ground floor, with chamfered arch to
inner face (to stairs) and rebated outer face. Inner end has
large stop-chamfered beams to ground floor, blocked C16 window
with diamond-section timber mullions and grained late C17
panels reset in late C20 frame to 1st floor.
Early C18 block has retained many original features: these
include dogleg stairs with toad-back handrail, fret-cut
brackets and C20 plain balusters to closed string; panelled
doors; fielded panelling to ground floor room with
bolection-panelled overmantel; panelled dado to 1st floor
room, partially renewed late C20; collar trusses with in-line
butt purlins to roof.
HISTORY: an interesting late medieval house, the absence of
smoke blackening to the roof indicating that a lateral stack
was provided from the outset; the fine early C18 block was
probably built on the site of the earlier service end, as it
adjoins the site of the late medieval through passage.

Listing NGR: ST9231173166

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q17544294

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

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  The green guide for historic buildings: how to improve the environmental performance of listed and historic buildings
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  Pioneers of Modern Design: From William Morris to Walter Gropius (Penguin Art & Architecture)
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  A Buying and Owning a Listed Building: A Brief Guide
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  England's Post-War Listed Buildings
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  Old House Care and Repair
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  Somerset: South and West (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)