Description

Peddie and Kinnear and John Lessels, built 1878. Italianate terrace comprising unified façade of 4-storey and raised basements townhouses with main-door and common stair flats behind; wide corner block to N, slightly advanced with canted bays. Basement area to street including some vaulted cellars and retaining walls. Sandstone ashlar, channelled ashlar at ground floor. Entrance platts oversailing basements. Base course and moulded cill course at ground floor. Moulded string and cill courses to 1st floor, with fielded panels and small rosettes at bay windows. Moulded cill course at 2nd floor becoming cornice at bay windows. Further moulded cill course at 3rd floor with fielded panels above between windows. Consoled corniced eaves course at 3rd floor (attic storey). Pilastered doorpieces with rectangular fanlight, deep brackets (some paired) supporting balustraded corniced balcony rising to bracketed and corniced 1st floor window. 2-storey corniced advanced 3-light rectangular bays (some canted to N) with reeded Corinthian column mullions at 1st floor; pilastered to outside. Moulded architraved windows throughout, bracketed and corniced at 1st floor; corniced at 2nd floor; square attic storey (3rd floor) windows.

N (ROTHESAY PLACE) ELEVATION: 4 bays, 4 storeys with slightly advanced chimney breast to left with small scrolls at 1st floor and fielded panel at 3rd floor. Fenestration to right only, tripartite windows at end bay to right. Architraved and corniced doorpiece with rectangular fanlight. Bracketed corniced and pedimented window at 1st floor; corniced windows at 2nd floor.

W (REAR) ELEVATION: squared, coursed rubble with some ashlar quoins and ashlar cills. Regular fenestration with some tripartite windows at 1st floor. Some advanced bays at ground and 1st floors.

Predominantly plate glass in timber sash and case windows; 4-pane windows at attic storey. Corniced ashlar gable end and ridge stacks with modern clay cans. Cast-iron railings on ashlar copes edging basement recess to street. Cast-iron rainwater goods.

INTERIOR: highly decorative classical interior scheme with detailed cornicing and some large foliate ceiling roses throughout 1st and 2nd floors. Corinthian columns at 1st floor with intricate foliate capitals. Some pedimented doorcases throughout 1st and 2nd floors. Dog-leg stairs with large cupolas and further highly decorative cornicing and roundel panes. Converted for later office use (2008).

MEWS BUILDINGS, BOUNDARY WALLS AND ANCILLARY STRUCTURES: range of single storey mews buildings to rear, predominantly single storey, coursed random rubble. Coursed random rubble boundary walls, with some ashlar quoins and copes (some integrated with mews buildings). Some later additions.

Statement of Interest

A prominent terrace with striking Italianate stone detailing incorporating one of the later parts of the former Walker Estate. The dramatic design is an important component of the streetscape with characteristic features, such as fluent architectural detailing, and a fine use of Corinthian columns and pilasters in prominent canted bays.

Peddie and Kinnear were an extremely successful Edinburgh practice gaining a large number of high profile public and commercial commissions including churches, hydropathics, poorhouses and numerous banks and hospitals. They also began to build speculatively, and developed high quality residential schemes from the 1860s onwards. The partnership was always forward looking and the adoption of the Greco-Italian style for this development is typical of the grander essays in this style used in their commercial buildings, especially banks.

John Lessels secured the control over the Walker Estate in 1850, only 4 years after he had set up practice on his own in 1846. He later went on to work for the City Improvement Trust in Edinburgh, and gained a wide experience of residential design with further designs in both the old and new towns of Edinburgh as well as some large commissions such as significant alterations to George Watson's Hospital.

(List description revised 2009 as part of re-survey.)

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17804798

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.

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