8 Rubislaw Terrace Including Railings, Albyn Place, Aberdeen

8 Rubislaw Terrace, Including Railings, Albyn Place, Aberdeen

A substantial palace block of 24 two-bay houses and 2 three-bay houses arranged in mirrored pairs around a central pavilion. The building was begun in 1852 by architects Mackenzie and Matthews (numbers 5–22), with the end blocks added in 1880–1883 by Ellis and Wilson (numbers 1–4 and 23–26). The structure is two storeys with basement and attic, spanning 54 bays in total. It displays a mixture of Scots Baronial and classical detailing, executed throughout in finely finished tooled coursed granite ashlar with margins emphasised.

The principal south elevation presents a carefully composed facade. The central pavilion (numbers 13 and 14) is a symmetrical six-bay composition of two three-bay houses with regular fenestration to the centre bays at principal and first floors. Doorways flank the centre at principal floor level, with single windows above. The gabled bays to outer left and right are stepped forward, featuring three-light canted windows running through basement, principal, and first floors, with a balustraded parapet forming a balcony at attic floor. Single windows are set within the gableheads, topped by stone finials. The symmetrical four-bay sections flanking the pavilion employ various window arrangements: some pairs feature doorways to the centre of the principal floor with tripartite windows to the flanking bays, while others follow the central pavilion's pattern of stepped gabled bays with canted windows and balustraded parapets. The end blocks by Ellis and Wilson (numbers 3, 4, 23, and 24) have windows to the centre of the principal floor flanked by doorways, with oversized gablets to the attic floor incorporating architraved windows and decorative hoodmoulds. Numbers 1, 2, 25, and 26 combine regular fenestration with canted gabled bays similar to the earlier work, featuring architraved gablehead windows with scrolled ornament above.

Throughout the south elevation, crowstepped principal gables predominate. Gableted dormers at the wallhead break the eaves blocking course, each topped by a stone finial. Granite pilastered doorways to the principal floor are surmounted by entablatures and reached by stone steps. A base course, eaves course, and eaves blocking course articulate the facade.

The east elevation, fronting Rubislaw Place, is asymmetrical and six bays. Its left side features four gabled bays with regular fenestration to the principal floor, a pair of windows to the centre of the first and attic floors, and a corbelled-out gablet with a single window inset at first-floor level. An angle turret corbelled out to the right culminates this section. Two two-storey bays occupy the right side, one featuring a tripartite window to the principal floor with a stepped hoodmould. The north elevation, fronting Rubislaw Terrace Lane, shows predominantly regular fenestration with a variety of later additions. The west elevation is obscured by the adjoining Queen's Terrace.

Windows are predominantly two-pane sash and case, with some small-pane windows to the north elevation. The roof is of grey slate with a lead ridge, finished with coped stone skews. Coped gablehead and ridge stacks carry octagonal cans. Cast-iron rainwater goods serve the building.

Enclosing the basement to the south elevation are iron railings. Replacement lamp standards are regularly positioned along the property. An L-plan granite rubble former coach house stands to the east of Rubislaw Terrace Lane, flanked by two square-plan gatepiers with spherical finials and a coped granite wall. Additional former coach houses of granite rubble and brick-faced construction occupy Rubislaw Terrace Lane.

A rectangular-plan garden lies to the south of Rubislaw Terrace. Low granite walls surmounted by replacement decorative railings enclose the garden to the south, east, and west. A balustraded granite terrace encloses the garden to the north, curving towards an entrance road to the east. Square-plan rough-faced piers with corniced caps stand at the angles and flank an iron gate at the centre. A fountain by Susan Jennifer Ball, dated 1992, occupies the centre of the garden, comprising a curved grey granite baluster set between pink granite rocks within a square pool.

The interiors have not been inspected.