Booth Museum Of Natural History And Attached Walls And Railings

BRIGHTON

TQ3005NW DYKE ROAD 577-1/19/207 (North East side) Booth Museum of Natural History and attached walls and railings

II

Museum. 1874. For Thomas Booth. Brown brick set in English bond with dressings of stone, red, yellow and black brick, some of it gauged, and blue glazed brick, roof of slate. PLAN/EXTERIOR: the museum is a long shed with a plain, unwindowed wall to the right-hand return, and a short, lower extension at its north-eastern end. The street front is treated in an Italian Romanesque style, with a flat-roofed porch across the whole front and the rest of the gabled front set back. Steps up to 2 identical round-arched entrances with voussoirs of red, yellow and black brick under a round-arched hoodmould, the voussoirs dying into a springing band of red, black and blue-glazed brick; double doors with decorative wrought-iron hinges. The pattern of round arches with voussoirs, hoodmould and springing band continues over the other openings: a niche between the doors and one either side of them, and a window beyond that; elaborate entablature of gauged brick with dentil work, frieze of upright bricks and moulded brick cornice. The gable is decorated with banding and diaper work in red brick, and one course of blue glazed brick which forms part of a springing band to an arcade of 5 blank round arches; Lombard frieze and moulded brick cornice to gable. Lantern to ridge of roof. INTERIOR: the interior is simply a long shed with a late C20 roof; the historical interest of the interior lies in the cases presented by Booth, which line the walls and the centre of the building, and show British birds in their natural habitat. Splayed walls either side of the building ending in coped red brick piers; cast-iron railings to steps. HISTORICAL NOTE: built by Thomas Booth to house his collection of stuffed British birds; presented to Brighton Borough Council in 1890 by his widow; and redesignated as a museum of natural history in 1973. (Carder T: The Encyclopaedia of Brighton: Lewes: 1990-).

Listing NGR: TQ3017505817