Description

John Chesser, 1877-1880. 3-storey with basement and attic row of terraced houses with 3-storey canted bays. Polished, channelled sandstone ashlar with polished dressings; droved sandstone to basement. Base course; band course between ground and 1st floors and 1st and 2nd floors, corniced at canted bays; dentilled cornice, with blocking course at canted bays. Coped skews; consoled cornice to keystoned, depressed-arch doorpieces.

NE (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: Nos 54-60: 4 2-bay houses. Window beneath oversailing platt to bay to left at basement; door with fanlight to centre (to right of platt); light to centre of canted bay at right, with steps down from street; ashlar steps and entrance platt to doorpiece to bay to left at ground; pilastered entrance to deep-set panelled timber door with narrow flanking lights and depressed arch fanlight; single windows to floors above; light to each face of canted bay at right, all 3 floors; variety of dormers at roof (except No 60): modern slate-hung 2-light box dormers to Nos 54 and 56; round-headed single-light dormer to No 58 at left, triangular-headed bipartite at right. No 62: 3-bay advanced end house, adjoining No 31 Douglas Crescent. Light to centre of outer, canted bays at basement; part-glazed timber door to left of platt, with window beneath platt; doorpiece, as above, to bay to centre at ground; single window to floors above, with dormer at roof; 3-light canted bays flanking, with canted dormers at roof.

2-pane timber sash and case windows. Grey slate roof; coped polished, channelled, mutual sandstone ashlar stacks with tall, moulded cylindrical and octagonal cans; cast-iron rainwater goods.

RAILINGS: spear-headed railings (set in coping) to street and to steps and entrance platts; plain railings to steps to basement from street, at right of each house.

Statement of Interest

Part of New Town A-Group. John Chesser was the Superintendent of Works to George Heriot's Hospital between 1858 and 1889. During his term of office large quantities of Heriot's land were feued, including land in the W of Edinburgh. Chesser was responsible for preparing ground and elevation plans for the new buildings. Opulent interiors were designed for many of the houses.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17802960

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

• 
  Specifications for Building Conservation: Volume 1: External Structure: Practical Examples v. 2
• 
  Maintaining and Repairing Old Houses: A Guide to Conservation, Sustainability and Economy
• 
  Setting up a Listed Building Heritage Partnership Agreement: Historic England Advice Note 5
• 
  Churches: An Architectural Guide (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Introductions)
• 
  Kent: North East and East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Wiltshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)