18 And 19, Colliergate

House, now shop. Built in 1748 for Ralph Yoward; altered, subdivided and partly raised at rear around 1830; further altered with a new shopfront in the 20th century.

The building is constructed of orange brick laid in Flemish bond with painted stone dressings. It features a prominent dentil and modillion cornice of timber and a pantile hipped roof with brick stacks.

The exterior presents a 3-storey, 5-bay front. The first floor windows are 1-pane sashes with painted stone sills and triple keyed flat arches of rubbed brick. Three second floor windows are 6-pane sashes similarly treated, though the fourth window has been altered to a 16-pane sash. A raised second floor band runs across the facade. Original rainwater goods survive at the right of centre, including a fine hopper embossed with a cherub head, dated 1748 and initialled RY; at the right end is a fluted inverted bell rainwater head.

At the rear, a round-arched staircase window features radial glazed sashes. Other rear windows are 6- and 16-pane sashes with segmental arches. Raised brick bands mark the rear elevation. The original part has a plain cornice with a dated and initialled rainwater head; an additional floor carries a paired modillion cornice.

Interior features include:

Ground floor: the rear left room has a plain fireplace with pulvinated frieze and moulded cornice shelf, and a moulded ceiling cornice. A triple-keyed round arch on pilasters with Greek key mouldings to the soffit leads to the stairhall. The stairhall and stairwell are lined with sunk panelling below a moulded dado rail, and the stairhall cornice is enriched with egg-and-dart mouldings.

The main staircase to the second floor has an open string, cantilevered treads with shaped and scrolled undersides, column balusters alternately plain, fluted and twisted, and a serpentine moulded handrail wreathed at the foot around a turned newel on a shaped curtail step. The round-headed staircase window is set in a Gibbs surround. A secondary staircase has an altered bottom flight; the upper flights to the second floor have a close string, turned balusters, square newels and a ramped-up moulded handrail.

First floor: the panelled landing has a dentilled ceiling cornice. Doorcases include one with a pediment and one with a dentilled cornice hood. The large front room features doorcases with eared surrounds and double doors of raised and fielded panels. Walls are panelled above the dado rail with applied egg-and-dart plaster mouldings, and the dentil and modillion cornice is replicated here. Fluted Corinthian pilasters flank the chimneypiece, which has a voluted eared fire surround, acanthus frieze and moulded cornice shelf. The eared and lobed overmantel panel has corner rosettes set within a surround of shell and flower drops and arabesques with a garlanded top panel surmounted by a pediment broken by a shell. An identical feature without a fireplace is repeated on the opposite wall.

The rear left room has two reeded doorcases with paterae and cornices, and an enriched cornice with ball mouldings. The rear right room contains a cast-iron fireplace with fluted jambs and frieze featuring paterae and a garlanded vase in the centre panel.

Second floor: several doors are of 6 raised and fielded panels, some hung on L-hinges. The centre front room has three fluted doorcases with corner lozenges; one includes a 3-panel cupboard door.