Numbers 14 To 34 And Attached Railings

Numbers 14 to 34 Imperial Square comprise a terrace of 21 houses constructed around 1834, as illustrated on a map from that year. The builders were Robert Todd and William Prosser, likely working from designs by John Forbes. The buildings are stucco-faced over brickwork, featuring a concealed roof and iron area railings, window boxes, and balconies.

The layout follows a double-depth plan, incorporating a side staircase and a three-story service range to the rear. The houses are subtly stepped to follow the upward slope of the land, with a ramped entablature running along the terrace.

The exterior presents three stories above a basement, with three windows to each house. Stucco detailing includes horizontal rustication to the ground floor, topped by tall Doric pilasters rising between windows on the first and second floors of alternating houses. An architrave, frieze, and cornice, finished with a blocking course, further embellish the facade. Tooled architraves frame the first-floor windows, with cornices accentuating the central windows of numbers 17, 19, and subsequent alternating houses. Original windows are mostly 6/6 sashes, taller on the first floor, set in plain reveals with sills below the ground and second floors. Basement windows are 8/8 sashes where original. The entrances, located on the left and right, are accessed by flights of roll-edged steps leading to 3-panel doors with overlights featuring glazing bars, set within elliptically-arched openings; numbers 14 and 15 now share a single central entrance. The left return features three first-floor windows with original 6/6 sashes, continuing the stucco detailing from the front facade. The rear elevation displays a mix of 6/6 and 8/8 sashes.

Inside, many original features remain, including dogleg staircases with stick and rod-and-bobbin balusters and wreathed handrails. Cornices are plentiful and ornate, varying in design. Number 24 possesses a particularly elaborate interior, with a ceiling frieze depicting grapes and an egg-and-dart cornice to the front ground-floor room. The rear ground-floor room has an egg-and-dart frieze and cornice embellished with daisies; the first floor features a tulip frieze, a deep cornice with daisies, further decorative friezes with flowers, a ceiling rose, and shutters.

External features include embellished rods to railings alongside the steps and an X-motif to the area railings across the front. The first-floor balustrade incorporates the Carron Company's signature double-heart-and-anthemion motif. A window box is located at number 14. A gryphon boot scraper is found at number 24.