23, Bathwick Hill

This is a detached villa dating to circa 1817, with later alterations in the late 19th and 20th centuries. It is attributed to William Smith of Walcot and possibly to Henry Edmund Goodridge. The building is constructed of limestone ashlar, with a late 19th-century slate hung attic and a flat lead roof, incorporating stacks to the returns.

The villa has a double-depth plan, featuring a set-back wing to the right and a hip-roofed lean-to running along the left return. The symmetrical three-bay main block is complemented by a recessed right wing. The central entrance is accessed via a glazed passage from the front gate and comprises double doors with corner bosses, flanked by six-over-six sash windows. The first floor has a moulded sill string and band, with six-over-six pane sashes above, the central one featuring a moulded hood on scrolled consoles. A deep projecting cornice with a parapet sits above, with square blocks marking the ends. A later attic storey is also present. The two-bay range to the right has a tripartite arrangement with central windows recessed in the middle bay.

The east-facing side elevation has a largely glazed lean-to at ground floor level, and a tripartite window with six/six-six/six-six/six pane sashes on the second floor. Above, the parapets step up to meet stacks on each return, with continuous cornices over linking panels pierced with semicircular arched slits. The rear elevation, to the right, features a bow window projection rising the height of the ground and first floors, incorporating an elaborate cast-iron balcony at first floor level, supported by cast iron brackets with anthemion decoration, and ornate Greek Revival iron railings. The tall arched windows with fanlights to the bow have a stone parapet above, with cast iron panels. A six/six pane window, slightly set back, is located on the second floor above the bow. Single windows are present to the left of the garden front, with the first floor window being tripartite, having two/two-six/six-two/two pane sashes and matching cast iron railings; the second floor has a six/six pane window with further railings.

The interior of the villa was not inspected.

The front gate piers have a fielded surface with dressed masonry finish. The property is a fine late Georgian house, distinguished by the Greek Revival influence evident in its detailing and tripartite compositions. The quality of the masonry and the cast iron embellishment on the garden front are exemplary of the period, and the building effectively utilises its setting to embody the picturesque ideals of Regency architecture. It may be an early work of Henry Goodridge, and comparisons can be drawn with Woodland Place.