Arthur Lodge, 60 Dalkeith Road, Edinburgh

Arthur Lodge, 60 Dalkeith Road, Edinburgh

Arthur Lodge is a Greek classical villa probably designed by Thomas Hamilton in 1829, with late 19th century additions. The building is a symmetrical, three-bay structure with a square plan, comprising one and two storeys with mezzanine and basement. It is constructed of cream sandstone polished ashlar, with a base course, panelled aprons, and tapered and lugged architraves to the ground floor windows. Panels to the outer angles feature incised anthemion detail. The building is finished with an eaves course, cornice and blocking course.

The south elevation facing Blacket Place contains the principal entrance. A two-storey pedimented central block with flanking single storey wings projects forward, approached by steps to the central doorway. The doorway is panelled and glazed, with Tuscan Doric columns, cornice and pierced parapet to the porch. Flanking windows are narrow, while the first floor features a balcony and single window with flanking pilasters. The single storey wings have central windows. To the right is a recessed bay adjoining the former entrance hall, which contains a central carved niche with a classical statue. A further bay to the right contains a glazed door and flanking pilasters serving the Dalkeith Road entrance. A balustraded parapet overlooks a sunken garden to the left.

The east elevation on Dalkeith Road features a doorway to the boundary wall with a two-leaf panelled door, pilasters and cornice. A single window serves the former entrance hall above. A recessed bay adjoins to the left, followed by a central three-light bowed window with strip pilasters between the lights. The guest flat adjoining the main house is single storey and three-bay, with a central panelled door, columns and pediment to the doorpiece, and single flanking windows.

The west elevation displays a conservatory at ground level with pilasters flanking openings, and single windows to the ground floor above. An advanced block to the outer left has a doorway to the outer right with a boarded door and multi-paned fanlight. Single windows serve the outer left and first floor above.

Throughout the building, windows are predominantly eight-pane with border glazing, though some twelve-pane windows appear on the west elevation. The roofs are grey slate, pitched and piended, with corniced sets of five square-plan flues to the two-storey central block. A single corniced stack serves the former entrance hall. Flues are finished with moulded octagonal cans.

The interior was restored in 1985. The ground floor centre features a two-storey atrium with geometric stone floor, timber panelled doors, and a stone staircase supported on Ionic columns beneath a segmental arched, barrel-vaulted roof with skylights and bay leaf garland moulding. The Drawing Room to the left contains Corinthian pilasters to pedimented timber doorpieces, panelled two-leaf doors and shutters, timber dado panelling, an original cast iron and marble fireplace, and original seating to the bowed window facing east. The cornice is richly decorated with egg and dart and bay leaf garland carving, and the ceiling is coffered. An octagonal garden room adjoins to the west, with floral carving to oak panelling dating from 1901. Two-leaf panelled doors to the north feature 17th century Venetian embroidered panels. A carved French marble fireplace dates to approximately 1750. The Dining Room to the west has been completely restored with dado panelling, marble fireplace, panelled doors and shutters, and pilasters, cornice and carved frieze to the doorpieces, featuring anthemion and palmette carving. The first-floor Octagon Room survives virtually complete as originally finished, with panelled doors and shutters, marble fireplace, original fitted bookcase with leaded lights, cornice and ceiling rose.

The boundary walls and gatepiers consist of a high, coped rubble wall to Dalkeith Road. The lower coped and coursed wall to Blacket Place is punctuated by two panelled and corniced gatepiers, each topped with a coped finish and obelisk finials.