15, 17 Howe Street, Edinburgh

15 and 17 Howe Street is a terraced tenement building constructed in 1802 by architects Robert Reid and William Sibbald. It is four storeys high with a basement and features five bays. The exterior is made of broached ashlar sandstone, with V-jointed rustication at the principal floor. There are band courses and cill courses at the first floor, a band course at the second floor, projecting cills for the second-floor windows, and a blocking course at the third floor, although the cornice has been removed. The entrance platts and steps extend over the basement, located at the outer left and right sides.

The west elevation, which is the principal facade, has a three-bay corniced shop front at the principal floor. This includes a recessed glazed door flanked by plate glass windows, and to the right, there is a two-bay pilastered and corniced shop front with a panelled door and a plate glass rectangular fanlight to the left, along with a plate glass window to the right. There is also a round-arched doorpiece to the outer left, leading to a nine-panel timber common-stair door with a radial semicircular fanlight above.

The north elevation adjoins another terrace, which is listed separately (19 and 19B Howe Street), and the south elevation also adjoins another terrace, listed separately (11 and 13 Howe Street).

The building predominantly features 12-pane timber sash and case windows and has a grey slate M-roof. There is a rendered ridge stack and a broached gablehead stack, both coped and with circular cans. The skews are also present.

The interiors were not seen in 1997, but there is some evidence of working panelled shutters. Additionally, there are iron railings present.