7 & 8 Edenduff Terrace, Antrim, Co Antrim, BT41 4NF

7 & 8 Edenduff Terrace, Antrim

A pair of single-storey terrace cottages of basalt rubble, now combined into one dwelling. These form part of what was originally a terrace of four similar single cottages, itself part of a larger row of five such blocks set in a rural area facing the main road.

The buildings are arranged with their main entrance facing south. The original arrangement consisted of two cottage units, each three bays wide with a central doorway flanked by windows on either side. The combined entrance elevation is now six bays wide. The functional main entrance is located in the former cottage No. 8 on the right, while the doorway of former cottage No. 7 on the left no longer operates as an entrance.

The entrance elevation is roofed in Bangor blue slates laid in regular courses with dark-toned ridge tiles. Two chimneys project from the roofline: one at the left-hand extremity is a red brick construction with a projecting blue-black brick cornice of three courses surmounted by a blocking course of red brick, shared with the adjoining house to the left. The right-hand gable chimney is of similar design but was rebuilt in rustic brick to replace the original red brick.

The walls are constructed of basalt rubble with roughly squared quoins at the right-hand extremity. A projecting brick eaves course runs along the wall. Openings are finished with red brick flat arches to the head and block dressings, though these are partly obscured by later cement reveals and raised surrounds. The masonry is pointed in lime mortar. A cast iron gutter runs along the eaves, though there is no downpipe.

Windows are rectangular timber sliding sash frames, 1 over 1, with horns, painted white. The sash boxes are exposed and also painted white. Stone cills project and are painted white. The doorway to former No. 7 contains a rectangular sheeted timber door surmounted by a rectangular fanlight of obscured glass in a moulded timber frame, with painted stone base blocks. A concrete doorstep is in place. Black PVC vertical cable trunking runs to the right of the doorway, set in a cast iron pipe at its base. The doorway to No. 8 is similar but fitted with modern metal letterbox, knob and knocker.

The east elevation presents a blank gable of basalt rubble with roughly squared quoins at the extremities. The masonry has been repointed. An old brickwork chimney breast rises flush with the wall on the upper portion of the gable but is much obscured by smeared pointing. The roof verges are virtually flush with slightly projecting smooth cement-rendered strips running from the eaves to the base of the chimney. Timber kneelers are fitted to the left-hand eaves, with one on the right obscured by creeper growth.

The rear elevation treats the two former houses as a unified composition. The roof is slated as on the entrance front and incorporates four modern rooflights. The wall is rendered with a wet dash of crushed stones and has a slightly projecting smooth cement-rendered plinth; both render and plinth stop short of the left-hand extremity to reveal part of the quoins. A projecting break eaves course runs along the wall, and parts are covered with creeper. A cast iron gutter with cast iron downpipe sits to the left-hand side, with PVC soil and waste pipes also present. There is one doorway and three windows. The doorway contains a rectangular timber sheeted half-door surmounted by a rectangular fanlight of obscured glass in a modern moulded timber frame with smooth cement-rendered reveals and a concrete doorstep. Windows are rectangular timber sliding sash, 1 over 1 with horns, set in exposed sash boxes with projecting concrete cills.

The building stands at one end of the original block of four similar cottages. The terrace row is set back slightly from the main road with a tarmac access road immediately in front, separated from the main road by kerbstones. Facing the terrace is the heavily wooded demesne of Shane's Castle, bounded by a basalt rubble wall, with agricultural land surrounding the remainder of the site. A gravelled driveway runs along the gable of No. 8, separating it from the adjoining block to the east, and leads to a large paved area at the rear with gravelled and landscaped garden beyond.