42-70, GLOUCESTER PLACE W1

A terrace of town houses located at 42-70 Gloucester Place, London, was built around 1790 to 1800 as part of the Portman Estate development. The buildings are constructed of stock brick with channelled or block rusticated stucco on the ground floors, and have slate roofs that are largely hidden. They are four storeys high, with basements and some added mansards or a full fifth storey. Most of the houses are three windows wide, though numbers 50, 52 and 70 have four windows. The main entrances, generally on the left side (with that of number 42 facing Blandford Street), feature semicircular arches with recessed panelled doors, side lights, or pilaster jambs. These entrances are decorated with Coade stone imposts and delicately patterned fanlights with lead ornament; number 48 has Coade vermiculated rustic blocks, voussoirs and a figured keystone. The windows are recessed sash windows, some with glazing bars, under flat, gauged arches. A plat band finishes the ground floor stuccowork, and stucco crowning cornices and blocking courses adorn the upper levels. Original cast iron balconies with geometric patterns remain on the first floor. Original cast iron area railings with urn finials are present, and numbers 42 and 50 incorporate well-detailed iron lamp standards. Number 48 was once the home of J.R. Godley, as indicated by a Greater London Council plaque. The terrace forms part of a remarkably extensive and well-preserved sequence of Georgian town houses in London.