70 Trumpington Street

70 Trumpington Street

This grade II listed building comprises three distinct phases of construction, arranged in a T-shaped plan on Trumpington Street in Cambridge. The building combines a mid-19th century street frontage with earlier structures at the rear, creating a complex architectural palimpsest spanning from the 15th century onwards.

The earliest element is a mid-15th century timber-framed building, rendered externally with a tiled gabled roof and end stack, facing the courtyard garden. Its west elevation features a late-18th or early-19th century inserted chinoiserie French window at ground floor level, with twelve-light horizontal sliding-sash windows above and a 20th century glazed door to the left. The north gable end contains tripartite casement windows on the first floor, with an external stack on the south elevation. A fragment of the original wall and floor frame of this earliest structure survives at the rear of the ground floor of the 19th century shop, with painted foliate decoration visible on the infill panels.

Adjoining this at right angles is a 17th century building with rendered brickwork and a tiled mansard roof, comprising two bays. The south elevation has a 19th century single-storey range running north-south. Both ground and first floor have 20th century insertions, and a 20th century dormer sits on the lower pitch of the roof. The north elevation features a projecting 20th century window and dormer replacing an earlier opening, evidenced by an in situ timber lintel.

The mid-19th century frontage building is constructed of white brick with stone dressings. Its ground floor contains a shop with a late-19th century glazed front divided vertically by slender colonettes into six panes with arched heads and plain glass spandrels, flanked to the left by an arched carriage entrance faced with ashlar stone blocks. The fascia bears the inscription 'Ede and Ravenscroft' with a simply moulded cornice supported on carved consoles. First floor windows have moulded stone surrounds with pediments above. A heavy cornice to the eaves with modillion and dentil decoration runs above the second floor windows. The attic dormer windows are probably 20th century in date. The building accommodates student rooms on the upper floors.

Interior: The ground floor principal room retains overpainted early-17th century plaster strapwork in the upper panels of contemporary coffered panelling, featuring foliate and double scroll motifs. Some panelling has been replaced, and an early-19th century alcove is inserted through the south wall. The original fireplace has been lost.

The first floor houses a complete 15th century crown-post roof with pegged jointing, cranked tie beams and upward bracing. One tie beam is chamfered and stopped at both ends. Two rear wall posts and part of the wall plate are visible, though wall framing is not exposed, likely obscured beneath interior plaster. A two-panel Georgian door opens into an adjoining bedroom with exposed jowled storey posts. A 20th century opening connects to the remodelled first floor of the 17th century building, where a bridging beam survives but little other original framing remains; all fixtures and fittings here are 20th century. The interface between the 17th and 19th century buildings has been substantially remodelled in the 20th century. The 19th century building's upper floors have been fully altered for student accommodation with 20th century fixtures, fittings, and plan modifications.