Home House (Courtauld Institute)
HOME HOUSE (COURTAULD INSTITUTE), 20, PORTMAN SQUARE W1
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- I
- List Entry Number:
- 1227105
- Date first listed:
- 10-Sept-1954
- List Entry Name:
- Home House (Courtauld Institute)
- Statutory Address:
- HOME HOUSE (COURTAULD INSTITUTE), 20, PORTMAN SQUARE W1
Location
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Images of England Project
- Date:
- 2001-07-17
- Reference:
- IOE01/04747/04
- Rights:
- © Mr Richard M. Brown. Source: Historic England Archive
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Official list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- I
- List Entry Number:
- 1227105
- Date first listed:
- 10-Sept-1954
- List Entry Name:
- Home House (Courtauld Institute)
- Statutory Address 1:
- HOME HOUSE (COURTAULD INSTITUTE), 20, PORTMAN SQUARE W1
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- HOME HOUSE (COURTAULD INSTITUTE), 20, PORTMAN SQUARE W1
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Greater London Authority
- District:
- City of Westminster (London Borough)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- TQ 27998 81305
Details
TQ 2781 SE and 2881 SW CITY OF WESTMINSTER PORTMAN SQUARE, Wl 54/37 ; 55/36 (north side) 10.9.54 No. 20 (courtauld Institute) Home House G.V. I Terraced town mansion. 1773-76, by Robert Adam for Elizabeth, Countess of Home; retaining exceptional Adam interior. Brown brick; concealed slate roof. Elevation designed to form one composition with No. 21 q.v. 4 storeys (attic storey an addition) and basement. 5 windows wide. Semicircular arched doorway in 2nd bay from right, under projecting painted stone porch with slender fluted Doric columns, dentil cornice and shallow pediment with die-acroterion. Ground floor recessed sashes with flat gauged arches set in blind arcade with stuccoed roundels in spandrels. 1st floor has recessed French casements, and upper floors recessed sashes, all under flat gauged arches. Painted stone guilloche bands above 1st floor and as sill band to 2nd floor with, in between, painted stone panels framing garlands and paterae. Cornice over 3rd floor and stucco balustrade to later attic. Continuous, cast iron, simple geometric patterned balcony across 1st floor. Wrought iron area railings with urn finials. Rear garden elevation has bowed, stucco, Ionic columned portico-porch; recessed sashes and a Venetian window composition to ground and 1st floors; 4 Coade stone circular relief medallions below 2nd floor windows and cornice below 4th attic floor crowned by balustraded parapet. Very fine Adam interior with plasterwork by Joseph Rose and inset painted panels and roundels by Zucchi and Angelica Kaufmann, the room shapes modelled in depth with a typically inventive Adam use of varied apsidal and screened volumes and outstanding quality of original finishes and furnishings. Spectacular circular tower-stairwell, set behind entrance hall, and top lit by dome, the stairs rising in one arm to niched landing and returning in 2 curved arms, with moulded soffits, to 1st floor; gallery at 3rd floor; refined wrought iron and gilded balustrade of open work pilaster pattern with anthemion and bucrania enrichment. The principal decorated rooms are the front and back drawing rooms, music room and back parlour with delicate colour schemes, stuccowork, attenuated architectural detailing and small-scale ornament; statuary marble and scagliola chimneypieces; etc. Home House; Margaret Whinney.
Listing NGR: TQ2799881305
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
- Legacy System number:
- 424710
- Legacy System:
- LBS
Sources
Books and journals
Whinney, M, Home House Number 20 Portman Square, (1969)
Other
Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England, Part 17 Greater London
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 08-Jun-2026 at 22:58:57.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.