Malvern House, 21, 23 Low Street, Portsoy, Portsoy, Aberdeenshire

Entry Name: Malvern House, 21, 23 Low Street, Portsoy

Listing Name: 21, 23 Low Street, 'Malvern', and Garden Walls

Listing Date: 22 February 1972

Category: B

Source: Historic Scotland

Source ID: 386153

Historic Scotland Designation Reference: LB40249

Building Class: Cultural

Also known as: Portsoy, 21, 23 Low Street, Malvern House

ID on this website: 200386153

Location: Portsoy

County: Aberdeenshire

Town: Portsoy

Electoral Ward: Banff and District

Traditional County: Banffshire

Tagged with: House

Description

Mid 18th century dwelling, re-fronted and re-furbished in early 19th century. 3-storey, 3-bay house sited on falling ground with tight 6-bay ground floor (alternate window-door-window and pend entrance extreme right). Ashlar frontage with polished ashlar dressings; harled rear to North High Street. Ground floor with commercial premises (former baker's shop): centre door with decorative radial fanlight flanked by shop windows with modern glazing, further door and window left and pend entrance at extreme right (north). Bandcourse continuous above ground floor openings. Symmetrical fenestration in 1st (raised ground floor) and 2nd floor. Venetian windows in outer 1st floor bays, each with blocked keystone to centre round-headed window and blocked impost carried continuously to form cornice over side lights. Centre bay lit by round-headed window with blocked keystone and imposts. 3 small 2nd floor windows immediately below wallhead. Timber sash and case windows with 8- and 12-pane glazing with intersecting astragals in curved window-heads; 6-pane to 2nd floor fenestration.

NORTH HIGH STREET FRONTAGE: 2-storey, 3-bay harled frontage of mid l8th century pattern (ground floor expressed as 1st floor in Low Street frontage). Harled with ashlar margins. Centre entrance flanked by window each side and with small lst floor window above. Off-centre wallhead gable capped by corniced chimney stack. Corniced end stacks; flat skews; shaped run-off skewputts; slate roof.

INTERIOR: simple entrance/stair hall entered through North High Street frontage with curved staircase rising below sloping ceiling. Ceiling decorated with small raised plaster figure of Hope with anchor and 3 crossed nautilus shells. 1810-20 beaded panelled doors to rooms right and left; plain dado rails; no original chimneypieces survive.

GARDEN WALLS: rubble garden walls enclose garden with pedestrian entrance to North High Street; decorative early l9th century cast-iron pedestrian gate with spearhead detailing.

Statement of Interest

21, 23 Low Street is sited between Low Street and North High Street. It is in an A Group with 29, 31, 33 Low Street. Venetian windows were in fashion in the NE of Scotland between Circa 1770-1820. The beaded panelled doors were a house carpentry fashion in NE circa 1800-30.

Unusual ashlar frontage.

External Links

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