4, 4A John Street, Portobello, Edinburgh

2 John Street in Portobello, Edinburgh, is a terraced house built around 1855, with later alterations and additions. It is two stories high and has seven bays arranged in a pattern of three, one, and three. The ground floor features deeply-channelled polished ashlar, while the first floor is finished in droved ashlar. The principal elevation has a polished ashlar canted window, and the northeast elevation is rendered with squared finishes, while the southwest elevation is made of squared and snecked rubble. Notable architectural details include a band course, a panelled apron, a cill course, a cornice, and a blocking course.

On the southeast (principal) elevation, there is a full-height canted window in the central bay, which belongs to the property at 4 John Street. The three bays to the right are closely spaced. Flanking the center are four-panelled doors, each with a two-pane rectangular fanlight above, and there are windows in each bay on both floors.

The northwest (rear) elevation was not visible in 1994, but it has two-storey additions in the outer bays. The windows throughout include two-pane and four-pane timber sash and case windows, with the canted window featuring four panes. The roof is covered with grey slate and has a double-hipped design, while the rear extension has a flat roof. The building is primarily constructed of ashlar, except for the northeast end and the mutual stacks.

The interior was not seen in 1994, but original shutters are noted in No 2. The boundary walls are made of roughly droved ashlar with polished ashlar copings and were formerly topped with railings.