15 And 16, Coombe Lane

House, now two dwellings, dating from around 1700 with 18th-century alterations, located on the east side of Coombe Lane in the Bowlish hamlet of Shepton Mallet.

The building is constructed of rubble stone, possibly Forest Marble, which is rendered, with dressed quoins to the front range (No. 15). The roofs are covered with double Roman tiles, and brick gable end chimneystacks serve both No. 15 and the rear wing (No. 16).

The structure comprises a two-storey lobby-entrance house with attics (No. 15) and a rear wing (No. 16) running parallel with the road. To the rear of No. 15 is a later addition with a catslide roof.

The entrance front of No. 15 faces south and features a central doorway with a stone square-headed surround decorated with bolection mouldings. The timber hood is a later addition, supported by acanthus leaf enriched stone scroll brackets. The doorway is flanked by windows set in moulded stone architraves. To the far left stands a small single-storey lean-to. The first floor has similar fenestration, comprising 19th-century eight-over-eight sash windows with glazing bars, except for one two-light moulded mullion window with side-hung casements above the door. Two dormer windows with casements occupy the roof. The gabled rear wing (No. 16) contains further mullioned windows, some with moulded cornices, though some windows were replaced in the 20th century.

No. 15 was not inspected internally as of 2010. No. 16, originally the service wing, has undergone internal modernisation but retains several ceiling beams and a fireplace with bolection-moulded surround on the ground floor.

Originally a single dwelling, the building was later subdivided into three separate houses, appearing as such on the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1888. A late-20th-century addition attached to the north side of No. 16 is now a separate dwelling (No. 14) and is not of special interest.

Historically, Bowlish was a separate suburban hamlet of Shepton Mallet in the post-medieval period. In the late 17th and early 18th centuries, numerous large clothiers' houses were erected there as wealthy wool and silk industry merchants created country retreats from the town.