Numbers 19-35 And Attached Railings

TERRACED HOUSES, ORIENTAL PLACE, BRIGHTON

A terrace of houses numbered 19-35 with attached railings, built in 1827 and designed by Amon Henry Wilds. The buildings are constructed in stucco with roofs of slate to numbers 21, 26 and 34, tiles to numbers 22-24, asbestos slate to former number 28 and former number 30, and remaining roofs obscured by parapet.

The terrace rises to four storeys over basement except for numbers 21-24, 26 and former number 30. Dormer windows feature on numbers 21-24, 26, former numbers 30, 32 and 34. The composition displays a three-window range throughout, arranged in rough symmetry with matching ranges on either side of a centrepiece, though the southernmost range is missing.

Common features across all houses include ground floor decoration with banded rustication, round-arched entrances with fanlights, two round-arched windows to the ground floor with springing band and blank balustrade to apron, continuous first-floor balcony with cast-iron railings, flat-arched windows above ground floor, entablature over second-floor windows, attic storey or dormers in mansard style, stacks positioned to party walls, and cast-iron railings to steps and area with conical finials.

The centrepiece at numbers 27 and former number 29 forms a nine-window range distinguished by giant fluted pilasters with ammonite capitals to the first and second floors, storey band between these floors, plain pilaster between attic windows, and stepped and panelled pediment to centre windows, now missing over the southernmost section. Numbers 26 and former number 30 comprise a three-window range with no pilasters but a storey band between first and second floors. Numbers 25 and former number 31 are a three-window range with giant fluted pilasters with ammonite capitals to first and second floors, storey band, entablature, pediment, pilasters between attic windows, cornice and blocking course. An eleven-window range is formed by two windows of number 21 and numbers 22-24, with a twelve-window range in former numbers 32-35, all featuring round-arched architrave over first floor windows with shell-mould in the tympana, entablature and blocking course to numbers 21-24 which have mansard dormers, with attic storey to former numbers 32-35. A seven-window range of numbers 19-20 and one window of number 21 features fluted giant pilasters with ammonite capitals to first and second floors, storey band between these floors, entablature, pediment over three central windows, and attic storey with pilaster between windows.

Individual houses retain notable original features: numbers 19 and 20 preserve sashes of original design to all floors including radiating glazing bars to ground floor; number 21 retains a panelled door of original design and original sashes to first and second floors; former number 22 has original sashes to ground floor; number 25 has original sashes to second floor; number 28 has original sashes to third floor; former number 29 features individual cast-iron balconies; former numbers 30 and 31 possess individual cast-iron balconies with original sashes to first and second floors, number 31 also to third floor; number 33 retains original sashes to first, second and third floors and blind boxes to first and second floors; number 35 is distinguished by an enclosed single-storey porch with sunk Doric columns at corners, banded rustication, round-arched entrance with fanlight, cornice and blocking course.

Number 19 includes a return frontage in Smallwood Place, comprising a five-window range with round-arched entrance bearing round-arched architrave under an open pediment on reeded consoles, round-arched windows to ground floor and flat-arched windows above (several blind), giant Doric pilasters to first and second floors, one ground-floor window with original sashes including radiating glazing bars, and all upper windows that are not blind retain original sashes.