Details
BRISTOL
ST5773SE RICHMOND HILL, Clifton
901-1/9/986 (North side)
21/02/73 Nos.24 AND 25
Thornton Hall (24), Edgecumbe Hall
(25) and attached railings
(Formerly Listed as:
RICHMOND HILL
(North side)
Edgecumbe Hall)
GV II*
Pair of attached houses. 1831-33. By Charles Dyer. Limestone
ashlar, lateral stacks and hipped slate roof. Double-depth
plan. Neoclassical style. 2 storeys, attic and basement;
5-window range.
A fine pair of back-to-back houses with opposite front
elevations and full side elevation. Principal front to
Edgecumbe Hall is symmetrical, the ends broken forward with
broad pilasters to a deep frieze, cornice, and parapet with 3
sections of balustrade to the middle, and outer sections with
end panels and attic windows covered by Greek key grilles.
Full-width verandah has central Pennant steps to a raised
flagged terrace, with square columns to an entablature, dentil
cornice and balustrade in 5 sections divided by anthemion
panels; central section breaks forward with distyle-in-antis
fluted Corinthian columns. Plain doorway has a large 2-leaf
6-panel doorway with margin and overlights. Architraves to
windows, panels over middle first-floor windows, ground-floor
French windows with margin bars and 2-light overlights, and
6/6-pane sashes.
Front elevation to Thornton Hall is a 3-window range, the
centre broken forward, with paired outer giant pilasters,
frieze, cornice and attic storey with pedimented end panels
over the pilasters, raised parapet centre with open panel with
Greek key grille, and balusters in between. Porch has panelled
clasping jambs to a balustrade, overlight with margin bars,
2-leaf 6-panel doors and margin lights. Right-hand bay has
panelled jambs and tripartite window, architraves above,
left-hand tripartite window, and 6/6-pane sashes. Side return
has 4-window range similar to Edgecumbe Hall, added storey ro
right, with outer tripartite bays with balustrades, and
central stone verandah with 2 tripartite openings each with
panelled piers and outer semicircular arches; segmental-arched
basement windows.
INTERIOR: fine and complete with extensive Greek Revival
plasterwork and joinery. Each has entrance halls, to central
top-lit stair wells; Edgecumbe Hall has a stone open-well
stair with cast-iron balusters, doors and arches with
guilloche panels, anthemia and palmettes to friezes and good
round stained-glass lantern. Thornton Hall has a timber
open-well stair with panelled soffit, cast-iron balusters and
square lantern. Attic and basement stairs with stick balusters
and ramped rails. Fireplaces, panelled shutters and 6-panel
doors.
SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: attached cast- and wrought-iron railings
to verandah and basement areas. The finest of an important
group of three early villas which '...set a new standard for
suburban aspirations' (Mowl).
(Gomme A, Jenner M and Little B: Bristol, An Architectural
History: Bristol: 1979-: 275; Mowl T: To Build The Second
City: Bristol: 1991-: 159).
Listing NGR: ST5766773364
