Numbers 54 And 56 (Even) And Attached Railings And Garden Gate

ISLINGTON

TQ3083NE RICHMOND AVENUE 635-1/57/704 (South side) 29/09/72 Nos.54 AND 56 (Even) and attached railings and garden gate (Formerly Listed as: RICHMOND AVENUE, Barnbury (South side) Nos.46-60 (Even))

GV II

Semi-detached villa. c.1841. Yellow stock bricks set in Flemish bond with stucco ground floor and dressings; hipped roof with coupled brackets to projecting eaves and centre brick stacks. Side-hall entrance plan with staircase. Greco-Egyptian style and detail. Three storeys with basement; 2 windows each plus recessed link. Ground-floor bays articulated by stylised rounded pilasters with paterae to tops; horizontal row of paterae extends between pilasters above entrance and sash. Steps rise to deeply recessed entrance porch to outer bays with flanking stone sphinxes and obelisks on stucco balustrade (sphinxes and obelisks missing from no. 56); doorway with pilaster jambs carrying corniced-head, original 4-panelled studded door (no. 56 with C20 glazing to upper door panels) and rectangular overlight. 6/6 sashes to no. 54: ground-floor sashes with margin lights. 2/2 sashes to no. 56. Recessed stucco panels below ground-floor sashes; upper floors with stylised architraves decorated with paterae. 1st floor with moulded stucco storey band and cast-iron Neoclassical style window guards with palmette motif. Linked garden gate to no. 54 in same style but with iron guards removed; attached cast-iron area railings to no. 54. In 1925 Arnold Bennett wrote in his diary after taking a trip to explore Barnsbury...'The sphinxes and little Cleopatra needles in front of the porticoes of a long row of houses in Richmond Road [sic] are too marvellous.'

Listing NGR: TQ3096883869