216 AND 217, BULL ROAD

Nos. 216 and 217 on Bull Road are two dwellings that originated as a house in the late 15th century. The building underwent modifications in the early 17th century when a floor was inserted and a stack was added, with further alterations in the 19th century. It features a timber frame that is plastered and has a thatched roof. Originally, it had a Z bay open hall with a lower storeyed service/solar bay and a narrower parlour, which was later extended to create a three-cell lobby entry plan. The structure now stands at two storeys.

The lobby entrance has a boarded door leading into the parlour addition, which is set back slightly, with an axial ridge stack positioned between the hall and parlour. The windows include 1, 2, and 3-light glazing bar casements, and there are hoodboards over the ground floor windows. An additional entrance with a boarded door leads into the hall, while the cross passage entrance has been blocked. The right gable end features a pentice board and a clay lump outshut, while the left gable end also has a pentice board and a 3-light attic window, with exposed plates and purlins, and a 20th-century lean-to outshut. At the rear, there is a boarded door in the cross passage position, a small 6-light window for the service bay, and to the right, 3-light glazing bar casements with the parlour set back.

Inside, the ground floor hall has an inserted floor with a binding beam that has a broad flat base and ogee to chamfered terminals, along with stop-chamfered joists. Much of the framing is concealed, but there is a large 8-light diamond mullioned transomed window at the upper end of the hall. Early doorways lead to two service rooms, and there is an early staircase to the solar. The first floor features close studding, arched bracing in the walls, chamfered arched braces, and a tie beam to an open truss with an octagonal crown post, which has a roll moulded bell-shaped base, capital, and concealed upper bracing. The parlour includes a two-light diamond mullioned window opening on the first floor, with collars to the side purlin roof.