James Stephens Barracks

Pair of detached nine-bay two-storey buildings, built 1803. Mostly refenestrated. Hipped slate roofs with clay ridge tiles, red brick Running bond and rendered chimney stacks, and cast-iron rainwater goods on rendered eaves. Painted rendered walls with painted roughcast walls having rendered stringcourse to first floor. Square-headed window openings with cut-limestone sills (forming part of stringcourse to first floor), and replacement uPVC casement windows retaining some six-over-six timber sash windows throughout. Square-headed door openings with cut-limestone steps, painted cut-stone block-and-start surrounds having double keystones, and replacement timber panelled doors having overlights. Set back from road in grounds shared with James Stephens (Kilkenny City) Military Barracks with painted rendered linking gate screen (comprising round-headed carriageway with round-headed recessed lower flanking openings forming 'Triumphal' tripartite arrangement with rendered stringcourses to spring of arches, rendered keystones, frieze to centre supporting carved cornice having blocking course with raised central panel, and rendered coping to flanking openings), and sections of stone cobbling.

A ensemble of middle-size buildings contributing significantly to the group and setting values of the James Stephens (Kilkenny City) Military Barracks complex. Attributes including the Classically-derived proportions, the sparse detailing limited primarily to the Wyatt-influenced doorcases, and so on, all serve to highlight a cohesive stylistic identity predominant throughout the grounds. However, while the original composition attributes survive largely intact the external expression of each range has not benefited from the insertion of inappropriate replacement fittings to most of the openings.