house

Attached two-bay four-storey over basement former townhouse, built c. 1820, as a pair with adjoining house to north(50930111). Two-stage return to rear (east). Now in use as offices. Pitched roof to west with irregular M-profiled hipped roofs to rear (east), concealed by brick parapet with masonry coping. Rendered chimneystacks to party walls with yellow clay pots. Parapet gutters with cast-iron hopper and downpipe to south end. Red brick walling laid in Flemish bond over rendered walling to basement beneath granite plinth course. Square-headed window openings with brick voussoirs, patent reveals and masonry sills, granite surrounds to basement. Largely multi-paned timber sliding sash windows; possibly original six-over-six to second floor, three-over-three to third floor and eight-over-eight to basement, all without horns; one-over-one replacements to first and ground floors with cavetto and ogee horns. Wrought-iron guard rails to third floor, cast-iron balconettes to second floor and continuous to first floor, cast-iron grille to basement opening. Round-headed door opening with brick voussoirs, moulded sandstone reveals and recessed sandstone surround containing prostyle portico with fluted frieze and moulded cornice carried on Ionic columns over plinth stops, plain fanlight and raised-and-field timber panelled door with replacement brass furniture. Granite entrance platform with cast-iron boot scraper, approached by five steps flanked by iron railings with decorative cast-iron corner posts on granite plinth, enclosing basement to south-side. Coal-hole cover to pavement. Street fronted on Fitzwilliam Square East. Mews building to rear (east). Elliptical-headed brown brick carriage-arch to east boundary on Lad Lane, with granite coping and timber gates, abutted by roughly squared and coursed limestone wall with square-headed pedestrian door opening having brown brick surrounds and timber sheeted door.

This pair of former townhouses retains its traditional form and proportions, mellow brick which contrasts with the granite dressings, well executed ironwork, and handsome Ionic doorcase. The development of Fitzwilliam Street Upper began on the north-end of the western side during the early-nineteenth century. Taken as a whole with Fitzwilliam Street Upper and the east-side of the Merrion Square, this uninterrupted stretch constitutes the longest piece of Georgian streetscape in Dublin. Although largely homogenous in character and form, the subtle variations between the houses are indicative of the speculative nature of development.