Little Dean's Yard Ashburnham House

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TO 3079 SW 101/13

CITY OF WESTMINSTER BROAD SANCTUARY, SW1 (ABBEY PRECINCT AND WESTMINSTER SCHOOL) Little Dean's Yard: Ashburnham House

24.2.58

G.V. I

Substantial town house: Commonwealth shortly before 1662; attributed to John Webb; partial rebuild and refacing of the later C.14 Prior's Lodging of which the masonry structure and the kitchen and hall walls are incorporated; west wing added 1930 by ALN Russell. Red brick C.17 facing to the C.14 rubble walls, tiled hipped roof. Three storeys. Seven windows wide grouped as five-window centre with two-window projecting wings. Central square headed doorway in plain rusticated surround with panelled door and fanlight; semicircular arched doorway to right hand east wing. Recessed glazing bar sashes under flat brick arches. Stone plat bands to each floor and stone cornice below Portland stone parapet with terracotta urns.

Internally the plan is not symmetrical because of need to accommodate the medieval work partly exposed on the west side and in kitchen; of the fine C.17 interior the most striking feature is the staircase rising approximately on square plan in spacious open well top lit by a large lantern and dome, very ingeniously adapting the irregularities of the site: the closed string stair with substantial baluster and panelled newels rises in four irregular flights between landings, the upper part of panelled walls articulated by fluted Ionic pilasters with attached Ionic columns and free standing column at head of stairs; richly stuccoed ceiling with scrolls and flower-enriched garland to large oval opening into lantern clerestory with four windows and balustrade with dies surmounted by groups of three slender columns carrying cornice with rich garland beneath shallow dome - a lantern gallery treatment reminiscent of Francois Mansart and unique in Britain for its date; heavily carved doorcases with segmental pediments and rich acanthus scrolls; the main first floor room also has a stucco ceiling with oval garlanded centre at right angle to the facade.

For the exposed remains of the Refectory in the garden see the Great Cloisters, Broad Sanctuary.

R.C.H.M.

London Voll, N Pevsner

Dictionary of British Architects; Howard Colvin.

Listing NGR: TQ3004679409