53 And 55, Micklegate

Town house, now nightclub, on the south side of Micklegate in York. Dated 1751 on the rainwater head at the rear. The house was subdivided and altered around 1813 when a second doorcase was added, but was returned to single occupancy in the 20th century and the stairhall ceiling was renewed in 1970. It is possibly by John Carr.

The front is built of orange-red brick in Flemish bond on a painted stone plinth, with rusticated quoins and painted stone dressings. The original doorcase is of painted stone with an added column of painted timber. The building has a dentil and modillion cornice of timber. The rear is of buff-red brick with red brick dressings. A double span roof with slate at the front and tile at the rear features stepped and shaped gable ends.

The exterior consists of a basement and three storeys with a five-window front. A flight of steps leads to a double doorcase of three engaged Tuscan columns with triglyph frieze and cornice hood, and two six-panel doors beneath radial fanlights set in round-arched architraves with imposts. The ground and first floors have 12-pane sash windows, the second floor has unequal nine-pane sashes, all with triple-keyed flat arches of gauged brick. The plinth band forms a sill band to the ground floor windows, whilst the first and second floor windows have painted stone sills and raised brick bands. At the rear, later extensions obscure the ground floor. A radial-glazed staircase window in the centre of the first floor sits beneath a keyed round arch of gauged brick with moulded imposts. The rear also has raised brick bands to the first and second floors and a moulded eaves cornice. Dated rainwater goods with ornate clamps are at the right end.

The interior contains extensive cellars, barrel-vaulted or groined, running beneath the whole house. The ground floor entrance hall has moulded skirting, dado rail and cornice enriched with egg-and-dart, and a doorcase with pulvinated frieze and dentil cornice. A round stairhall arch with triple keyblock has panelled reveals with moulded imposts and bases. The stairhall retains the skirting, dado rail and cornice from the entrance hall, along with a similar doorcase. The main staircase to the first floor has an open string, three balusters alternately turned, twisted and fluted to each stair, and a serpentine moulded handrail wreathed at the foot around a fluted column newel on a shaped curtail step. The radial-glazed staircase window sits in a pilastered round arch beneath floral swags and pendants.

The front room on the ground floor is fitted with raised panels in egg-and-dart moulded surrounds. Two enlarged, eared and shouldered panels on the side walls are bordered with Greek key mouldings in similar surrounds. The room has a sumptuous cornice of dentils, egg-and-dart and modillions alternating with rosettes. Moulded door and window cases survive, with the doorcase having a frieze of rinceaux and a cornice enriched as the ceiling cornice. Windows have panelled shutters similar to the wall panelling. The chimneypiece has Ionic columns beneath an enriched frieze and broken pedimented overmantel in a plaster moulded surround of pendant garlands. The back room has sunk dado panelling, moulded cornice and plain window shutters, with a mid-19th-century fireplace.

At the rear of the inserted entrance hall to No.55, a round arch on panelled pilaster reveals with moulded imposts leads to the original secondary staircase. This staircase rises from ground to first floor with a close string, turned balusters and square newels, and a moulded ramped-up handrail. To the right of the entrance passage, a wide square-headed opening in a moulded frame with lion mask paterae leads to the front room. This front room has a fireplace with fluted jambs and frieze flanked by fitted cupboards whose lower doors, with applied composition roundels enclosing female heads beneath shaped panels, survive. Panelled window reveals and dentil cornice are also present.

On the first floor, the upper part of the main stairwell has wall panelling above a moulded dado rail and a renewed ceiling of Rococo plasterwork panels enriched with egg-and-dart mouldings and a cornice of acanthus modillions and rosettes. A lobby to the front reception room is approached through an opening in the form of an Ionic triumphal arch of fluted pilasters, entablature and dentilled pediment, broken by a moulded round arch with triple keyblock and panelled reveals. Flanking arches are blind and enriched with egg-and-dart moulded panels enclosing floral drops. Eared doorcases have enriched architraves and pediments (one broken) and doors of six moulded panels. The front room has moulded window cases with lion mask paterae and two fireplaces, one reeded with carved posies in angle blocks, the other with grooved elongated console jambs and a frieze carved with rinceaux and swags. A moulded cornice is present. The rear room has panelled walls and a fireplace with pulvinated frieze and moulded cornice shelf.

The altered secondary staircase rises to the attics with slender turned balusters and newels. The attics have gypsum plaster floors.