St Michael's/Glenburn

Semi-detached pair of double-pile two-bay two-storey houses over basements, built c. 1905, having single-storey canted-bay windows over basements to inner bays of front (west) elevation, two-storey over basement gabled box-bays to side elevations, and lower two-storey returns over basements to rear. Pitched natural slate roofs to front pile, box-bays and to returns, hipped natural slate roof to rear pile, having red brick chimneystacks with cornices and clay pots, clay ridge tiles with scrolled finials, moulded brick eaves courses, decorative terracotta tiles to bay window gables, and some cast-iron rainwater goods. Red brick walls laid in Flemish bond, with moulded red brick stringcourse forming cornices to parapets to canted-bays, and with moulded render plinth course over lined-and-ruled rendered walls to basement. Square-headed window openings with one-over-one pane timber sliding sash windows, cut granite sills, and with continuous sills to bay windows. Deeply recessed porches with round-headed outer openings having moulded red brick surrounds with terracotta keystones, with recent glazed timber door to No. 40, square-headed inner door opening to No. 42 with timber panelled door, plain over-light and leaded sidelights, terrazzo floor, and decorative tiles to side walls. Granite thresholds and flights of granite steps with wrought-iron railings on rendered retaining walls. Set in own grounds with gardens to front and rear, with rubble stone boundary walls to front of site, red brick boundary walls to south boundary. Wrought-iron double-leaf gates to No. 40, having square-plan red brick piers with pointed capstones, recent gates to No. 42.

This pair was built following the lease of the lands in 1898 by Col. Edward Vernon to Dominic Dolan. The lease specified that Dolan was to build three pairs of two-storey over basement villas to the north of 'an intended new road', but it appears from physical similarities that all four pairs had the same builder. This type of speculative development was increasingly popular in Clontarf at the turn of the century, with numerous terraces and groups of houses built to accommodate the middle classes and the well-to-do. The use of bay windows and recessed porches add depth and interest to the elevations, while the use of red brick over render walls and subtle brick embellishments further enliven the facades. Developments in brick-making technology at the time ensured an affordable supply of well made bricks for decorative effects such as these. The entrances are particularly finely detailed, with glazed tiled walls, terrazzo floors, and leaded sidelights showing evidence of skilled craftsmanship.