Details
WIDCOMBE CRESCENT
656-1/42/1897 (West side)
Nos.1-14 (Consec) with area railings
12/06/50
GV I
Fourteen terrace houses, with basement areas and railings. c1805, almost certainly by Charles Harcourt Masters (Ison).
MATERIALS: Limestone ashlar, slate mansard roofs, some pantile or concrete tile.
PLAN: Generous crescent with carriage approach on concave east side, with five pairs to centre (not six, as Ison), and two singles at each end. Central pair, and one at each end are slightly stepped forward. All houses are very deep, with stair returning to front, and larger rooms to rear (west), because of steep fall in land;, rear has full extra basement storey, reading as basement to front, and some have further sub-basement.
EXTERIOR: Three storeys, attic, basement and some sub-basements, windows almost all sashes, many with glazing bars, but with variations as detailed below, few windows have balconettes. Paired houses, Nos.3-12, have each one or two twelve pane sash dormers, plain to No.5, and wide dormer to No.4, then each pair has tripartite central sash flanked by singles at first and second floors, these generally twelve pane, but plain to ground floor of Nos.5, 6, and 7, and twelve pane to each basement area. Tripartite window normally in eight:twelve:eight panes, but eight:nine:eight at second floor to Nos.3/4, six:nine:nine pane to second floor Nos.9/10, and six:blind:six at first and second floors to Nos.11/12, in all cases central light is glazed, but blocked behind, corresponding with party divisions. No.10 has two light casement with margin panes at second floor. Centred to each pair under sunk elliptical headed panel with ribboned festoons of husks are original panelled doors with swagged fanlights, and separated by narrow panelled pilaster. High relief rosettes in spandrel over pilaster. At each end two houses differ slightly, and provide articulation to whole. No.1 has two light dormer above tripartite eight:twelve:eight at second floor, similar but without bars to first floor, and paired sashes with margin panes to four sides to left of arched doorway with door to large central roundel, and fanlight, and plain sash to basement. No.2 has small dormer above two twelve pane at first and second floors, and single to left of arched doorway with original panelled door and fanlight, with twelve pane to basement. No.13 similar, but with two small two light casement dormers, and all plain sash, in splayed surrounds (except basement), with door to left. No.14, with lower flat roofed extension to left, has two C20 dormers above plain tripartite at second floor, and at first floor, but with segmental heads to lights. Ground floor has plain paired sashes, and basement area glazed over. Addition to left presents two storey blank wall to front. Plain band above ground floor, continuous sill band to second floor, moulded cornice with blocking containing open balustrades above windows, and parapet, all this articulating detail stepped down between Nos.1/2 and 3/4, and again down between 10/11, 12/13, and 13/14. Above Nos.7/8 is inscribed on platband in fine Roman capitals: WIDCOMBE CRESCENT. Paired houses have plain pilaster at either end. Party divisions and end gables are coped, and eight deep ashlar stacks. Basement area to each house contained by simple spike railings on stone curb to rounded top, and railings return to fronts, with paved bridge. Small gates to basement stairs to Nos.3,8,9,10,11,12 and 13, some original stone steps remaining to Nos.10 and 11. No.1 has plain overthrow with replaced lantern. Return at east end, runs with Widcombe Hill splaying out from original end of crescent and increasing size of this house. High coping rises behind flat roof, and severely plain wall has twelve pane and eight pane sash plus two blind lights, above sash with diagonal bars, with two arched lights, one with margin panes, at ground floor level. All set to broad band above rubble wall, which continues down hill, as boundary. At far end, gable to No.14 raised to centre with single light, and below terrace on extended section, with extra storey, with arched light, to right, extension returns to rear with door to pavement at lower level. Broad rear elevation to houses has dormers above four levels of fenestration, and sometimes door or window at sixth level in sub-basement. Normally two dormers to each house, paired and single, but No.4 has full-width dormer with 12:16:16:12-pane lights, C20 dormers to Nos.5,7, and 14, and one dormer to Nos.2,6,7, and 8. Below are normally tripartite sashes, some with bars but many plain, at three floor levels, with various singles and doubles with additions below. No.1 has tripartite sash each side of twelve pane, and wide verandah with tented canopy on eight standards, and five supporting brackets to main ground floor, below this level with tripartite and two single sashes above large flat roofed single storey bow with large arched lights and central doors to small porch. Nos.2 and 3 each have two sashes to each level, not tripartite lights, and No.4 has large ten:fifteen:ten pane sashes to ground and first floors, with verandas and standards. Various balconettes, generally at first floor level. No.11 has aluminium replacement sashes on this front. Small cornice, with blocking course and parapet, stepped as to front, and walling all in ashlar except for some sub-basement areas.
INTERIORS: Not inspected. No.3 was sub-divided in 1987; No.9 in 1971; No.11 in 1977; No.12 in 1988; No.13 in 1985.
SUBSIDIARY FEATURES: Decorative cast overthrow outside No.1. Railings to fronts.
HISTORY: The Crescent is grouped with Widcombe Terrace (qv) to its east, built at the same time; Ison describes them as "....one of the most charming building ensembles in Bath". The curved rear, with its Coliseum-like bulk, is particularly impressive seen from below. The attribution to Harcourt Masters is based on the appearance of his name in several leases. The crescent is novel for its semi-concealed street front and contrastingly imposing curved rear, which, with its Coliseum-like bulk, is particularly impressive seen from below; it would have afforded the occupants fine westward views towards Beechen Cliff and was thus designed with Picturesque principles to the fore. Stylistically the crescent is a transitional work, linking the legacy of the younger Wood with the Regency style typified by John Pinch, but with Masters¿s own idiosyncrasies too.
SOURCE: W. Ison, The Georgian Buildings of Bath (2nd ed. 1980), 181-3, 176; Bath Archaeological Trust/RCHM England, Georgian Bath Historical Map (1989).
Listing NGR: ST7572164057
