Nos 7 And 8 Including Pintle For Abbeygate

ABBEYGATE STREET No 7 and 8, including pintle for Abbeygate 05/08/75

GV II

House, now fish and chip restaurant. c1810. MATERIALS: Limestone, rendered and painted with Welsh slate, and pantile roof. PLAN: Double depth plan with C20 extensions. EXTERIOR: Three storeys, attics, and cellar, three windows wide above modern ground floor shop front, with large plate glass windows. First floor sill band, moulded cornice, parapet. Three windows to upper floors, six/six sashes in moulded architrave surrounds, round headed on first floor with radiused glazing bars to sashes. Mansard roof with slate lower slope and pantile upper, three flat topped dormers with six/six sashes, end stone stacks with pots. Elevation to Abbey Green in corner between Nos.4 and 5. Painted stone, with pantile roof. Two storeys. Narrow ground floor with door architrave now converted to window, six/three. First floor has six/six sash to left and blind window recess to right. Cornice, parapet. ADDITIONAL FEATURE: Included on the left of the elevation is a large iron pintle which is reputed to be, and was previously listed as, one of the pintles from the medieval Abbey gate which was across Abbeygate Street at right angles to the present arch (Gateway demolished 1744 pintle then fixed to No.7 Abbeygate Street), and was resited when Marks and Spencer was built in 1973. Rear elevation of main building largely hidden by C20 extensions with steel windows. INTERIOR: Of restaurant entirely modernized, otherwise not seen. HISTORY: This house was the Freemasons Arms', c1820-1911. It was the landlord of this pub who proposed to purchase Lansdown Tower after Beckford's death (Lansdown Road qv) for use as a pleasure garden. This prompted Beckford's daughter to buy the property back and present it to the Rector of Walcot for use as a cemetery and chapel, and to enable her father to be buried there. SOURCES: E. Holland,The Kingston Estate within the walled City of Bath' (1992).

Listing NGR: ST7510864645