12a and 13, Westgate Street

12A and 13 Westgate Street are a pair of houses with shops located at the end of a row, also facing St Michael's Place. They date from the early 18th century, possibly before 1727, and have undergone later alterations. The front is made of painted limestone ashlar, while the rear is constructed from rubble, topped with a slate roof and some double Roman tiles.

The buildings have a broad street frontage and include a small parallel range to No. 13, which features a cross-gable, and two face gables at the rear above a central stair. They rise four storeys and have a total of three windows on No. 12A and four on No. 13. All windows are plain sashes with thin bolection mould architraves and moulded sills. In the attic storey, there are three small widely spaced windows. The first window on the second floor is blind, and on the first floor, the first and fourth to seventh bays are also blind. Both properties feature poor 20th-century shopfronts. Moulded cornices are present above the first and second floors, with a cavetto cornice at the blocking course and parapet. There are stacks at each end of the buildings. The right return appears to be made of 19th-century masonry, and a long low wing extends down St Michael's Place. The rear has coped gables and a variety of windows, including a two-light casement with an ovolo mould stone surround and a deep twelve-pane stair light. The gable returned at right angles has replaced lights, and there are extensions to the lower levels.

The interior has not been inspected but may contain interesting details. Despite significant modifications, the fronts of these houses are clearly identifiable as early 18th-century buildings from the pre-Wood era and are similar to the adjoining Nos 14 and 15, suggesting they may have been built around the same time. Their scale and original quality highlight the significance of this street in the early layout of the city, before Bath expanded beyond its original boundaries.