Market House

Market House

This former town hall, now in commercial use, was designed by Charles Henman, Senior in an Italianate style. It incorporates a 1706 statue of Queen Anne by Francis Bird from the earlier Town Hall that stood on the site dating from 1505. The building was constructed by local mason John Trigg. The ground floor cast iron beams and columns were supplied by T Francis' Kingston foundry, and the bell in the south-west turret was cast in 1840 by Thomas Mears of Whitechapel.

The building is constructed with a Portland stone ground floor featuring ornamental ironwork to the window tympana. The upper floor is of yellow brick in Flemish bond with Bath stone dressings and a hipped slate roof with a central stone chimney.

The rectangular plan comprises two storeys, five bays to the north and south and six bays to the east and west, with taller projecting square corner towers and an elliptical porch on the south side. Internally the ground floor contains an entrance hall over two bays on the south side with a south-east staircase. The remaining part was originally an open market but windows were inserted in the late 19th century, creating a large room of four bays. The first floor has a smaller room on the south side, originally the Justices Room, and a larger room to the north, originally the Council Chamber.

The south entrance front has a rusticated stone ground floor. The central three bays comprise an elliptical porch with three round-headed entrances with keystones and impost blocks, round-headed fanlights over double doors with narrow round-headed glazing and fielded panels below. A cast iron lamp stands over the central entrance. Above is a balustraded parapet with a central plinth projecting over a stone lion's mask and paws bearing a gilded lead statue of Queen Anne with crown, orb and sceptre. The upper floor central three bays are of yellow brick with a stone parapet and moulded cornice. There is a central multi-pane sash window with a pediment flanked by two circa 1935 projecting square bays of three tiers with leaded lights. The projecting end bays on the south side have ground floor round-headed alcoves with keystones and impost blocks. The first floors have triple round-headed windows with marginal glazing, projecting pediments above with bracket cornices supported on end piers, and closed balustrades below. Above the first floor are hipped pavilion style square corner features with round-headed openings on each side flanked by paired stone pilasters and hipped roofs with metal finals.

The central four bays of the east and west sides are recessed with moulded stone cornices and 6 over 6 pane sash windows on the first floor in stone architraves with cornices on brackets and balustrading below. The ground floor has rusticated stone round-headed arcading with keystones and impost blocks. The tympana have late 19th century cast iron scroll-work above 10 over 10 pane sash windows with horns. The projecting corner bays are identical to those on the south side except their ground floors have identical windows and cast iron scroll-work tympana to the central bays.

The north side is similar to the east and west sides with a recessed centre of three bays with moulded stone cornice, three 16 over 6 pane first floor sash windows and a rusticated stone ground floor with keystones, impost blocks and cast iron scroll-work tympana. The central bay has an entrance with double doors with a glazed round-headed panel above a fielded panel and a cast iron lamp above. The flanking bays have 8 over 8 pane sash windows with horns below cast iron scroll-work tympana. The projecting corner bays are identical to those on the east and west sides.

The ground floor interior is laid with stone slabs throughout. The entrance hall has an elliptical arch, a wood and glazed screen incorporating double doors, a stone staircase in the eastern tower with cast iron columnar newel posts and balustrades and a number of fielded panelled doors.

The larger north room, originally containing an open market, is of four bays with cast iron ceiling beams supported on cast iron columns, both carrying the mark of T Francis whose foundry was on the Horse Fair, just north of the parish church.

The upper floor has a small south room, originally the Justices Room, approached through double panelled doors. Its west wall has a central arch, until 1935 an alcove lined with Elizabethan panelling from the earlier town hall on the site with the Arms of Queen Anne above, and two panelled doors. The deep coved ceiling has bands of guilloches and brackets.

The larger north room, originally the Council Chamber, has corner towers which retain marginal-glazed curved sash windows with some coloured glass and floral motifs. The central three bays of the north wall have Roman Corinthian columns and pilasters. The south wall has two large double doors with fielded panels and moulded architraves. The ceiling has bands of dentils and rosettes and a central circular ventilation grille. The plaster cornice and timber columns are based on the 4th century BC Choragic Monument of Lysicrates in Athens.