7, Athenaeum Lane

No. 7 Athenaeum Lane is a house with a core dating back to the 16th century, featuring alterations from the 18th century and a 19th-century extension. The building is timber-framed and rendered, with 20th-century plain tiles on the roof. It stands two storeys high with a cellar and consists of five bays. The front facing Athenaeum Lane has a variety of window styles, including a continuous row of five casement windows, some of which are leaded, a four-pane sliding-sash window on the upper storey, and a six-pane sash window in a flush cased frame on the ground floor. At the south end, there is a lean-to extension made of red brick mixed with stone blocks, featuring a large paired 20th-century replacement 18-pane sash window with a flush cased frame. There is also a 20th-century extension along the east side.

Inside, the cellar is lined with limestone blocks and is partly tunnelled, with very heavy timber joists supporting the roof. A niche contains part of a reused medieval pillar. While no timbers are exposed on the ground floor, both storeys feature a significant amount of square Jacobean panelling. The upper storey has an open truss with a straight tie-beam and solid arched braces at the south end, indicating that the frame may have extended further south or connected to a former building. A long tension brace is present in the front wall. The north end of the upper room has 18th-century panelling with long upper panels and raised fielded panels at the dado level. The roof has some old timbers but is mostly renewed. This building appears to be the oldest structure on the Athenaeum site.