53, 55, 57 Cumberland Street, Edinburgh

43, 45, 47, 49, and 51 Cumberland Street is an earlier 19th-century, three-storey and basement terraced tenement with 17 bays. It features broached ashlar sandstone, polished at the principal floor. There are band courses between the basement and the principal floor, as well as between the principal floor and the first floor. A cill course is present at the first floor, and the second floor windows at Nos 43-51 have projecting cills, with a cill course at the second floor for Nos 53-57. The second floor is capped with a cornice, and ashlar steps and entrance platts extend over the basement.

On the north (principal) elevation, the principal floor includes painted shop fronts from Nos 43-51. In the sixth bay from the left, there is a four-panel common stair door with a six-pane rectangular fanlight, flanked by a pair of three-bay shop fronts that have two-leaf timber doors and four-pane rectangular fanlights. These are further flanked by a pair of two-bay shop fronts, with a modern timber door and plate glass rectangular fanlight at No 43, and a four-panel timber door with glazed upper panels and a four-pane rectangular fanlight at No 51. The principal floor features a variety of plate glass and multi-pane windows, with regular fenestration on the floors above. There is a four-panel timber common stair door in the fifth bay from the right, along with four-panel timber doors with rectangular fanlights in the third and sixth bays from the right, and windows in the remaining bays at the principal floor. The floors above and the basement also have regular fenestration.

The east elevation has windows located at the centre right on all floors. The west elevation adjoins another terrace, which is listed separately (Nos 59-73A Cumberland Street).

The building predominantly features 12-pane timber sash and case windows. It has a grey slate M-roof with slate-hung bowed dormers at Nos 43-51, grouped in threes. The property includes cast-iron rainwater goods and rubble, part-rendered, and broached ashlar ridge and gablehead stacks that are coped with circular cans.

The interiors were not seen in 1997, but there is some evidence of working panelled shutters. The railings consist of an ashlar cope topped with cast-iron railings featuring fleur-de-lis balusters and pineapple finials.