51, High Street

No. 51 High Street

A timber-framed building dating from the 16th century, with later frontages and significant interior features of architectural importance.

The building is two storeys with attics, and retains its original timber frame beneath later external treatments. The south elevation facing Tarrant Street was given a painted brick frontage in the 18th century, whilst the east elevation facing High Street received a late 19th-century brick frontage. The west (rear) elevation is partly tile-hung. The roof is hipped and gabled with clay tiles. A distinctive red and grey brick chimney has a louvre instead of the conventional chimney pots.

The south elevation features a brick modillion eaves cornice and two windows on each floor. One ground-floor window has a tripartite wooden frame with a centre light fitted with vertical iron bars set diagonally and flanking lights with lead glazing bars. A single attic dormer with a gabled head contains three plain lights and brick nogging in the gable end.

The east elevation presents the principal late 19th-century frontage. At ground-floor level are three bay windows with glazing bars and moulded brick decorative panels set into their plinths, together with a modern plate glass door, one double-hung sash window with glazing bars beneath a gauged brick apron with an ogival lower edge, and a six-panelled door in a plain surround. The last two elements are grouped together under a moulded brick cornice. The first floor has three double-hung sash windows with glazing bars.

The west elevation contains a largely demolished wing and five double-hung sash windows with glazing bars.

Interior features of outstanding significance survive. A ground-floor room retains a plaster ceiling dating from the mid or late 16th century. This ceiling features slender curving ribs which intersect to form apple-shaped motifs, enclosing oak trees with acorns rendered in low relief. The smaller intervening spaces are filled with two different types of rosette. Seven larger spaces contain Tudor roses surrounded by laurel wreaths, and two larger spaces contain lions rampant. The original mid or late 16th-century panelling in this room is mostly concealed by hardboard, but the exposed portions appear to be later than the ceiling, the line of the ceiling cornice cutting through the middle of each panel.

An upper room features identical mid or late 16th-century oak panelling, painted grey. The panels are of regular size throughout, approximately 1 foot high and 9 inches broad, with stiles moulded on the solid and identical throughout. The muntins are interrupted by the rails. Mouldings are mitred on the underside of the rails only, not on the upper side, and the rails themselves are not moulded on the upper side but have a plain chamfer. Pilasters that once flanked the chimney piece have been removed, though their plinths remain, approximately 1 foot 6 inches high with recessed panels showing no fielding, strapwork, or other decoration. The unpainted profiles of the pilasters show them to have been approximately 7 feet high, disproportionately narrow, with an entasis and slightly over-wide Tuscan capitals and wide bases. A fluted frieze motif appears above the door and chimney piece. The panelling is not entirely regular and appears to have been fitted as best possible around two double-hung sash windows. A mid 19th-century cast-iron rococo fireplace is also present. The ceiling of this room has now collapsed, though traces of plaster and lathes remain on the ceiling joists; it may have overlapped the panelling and thus been later in date.

A further small upper room retains early 18th-century fielded panelling up to dado level, together with a doorcase featuring a moulded surround and segmental fanlight.

The staircase is early 18th-century in date, with a plain rail and turned balusters.

Numbers 51 to 67 (odd numbers) form a group of related buildings.