Royal Institution of South Wales (Swansea Museum) Boundary Walls & Railings

The Royal Institution of South Wales, also known as Swansea Museum, features boundary walls and railings and is a two-storey building with a basement, constructed from Bath stone. It has a temple-like design with a fluted Ionic tetrastyle portico that includes a pediment and steps leading up to it. The building is adorned with a dentilled cornice and a blocking course that extends to the three-bay flanks, which are accentuated by Doric pilasters. The upper storey is blind, while the ground floor showcases a band course and ramped, lugged architraves. The sash windows are fitted with marginal glazing bars. The central doorcase has a ramped architrave, a fanlight, and double doors featuring anthemion panels.

To the right, there is a one-bay return elevation with a low top-lit gabled rear extension that has a blocked arched keyblocked doorway. The left end has a three-bay return with a similar low top-lit gabled rear extension, and modern extensions are present in the angle.

The property retains original ironwork railings with scrolled supports that curve forward to both sides of the portico. These are complemented by tapered panelled piers made of cement, which feature entablatures. The railings extend on the right to connect with a low rubble boundary wall that continues as a crinkle-crankle to the rear, while on the left, they meet another rubble boundary wall at Adelaide Street.

Inside, the entrance hall retains its ramped architraves and double doors that lead to the library on the right and the lecture hall on the left. The library is notable for its mahogany bookcases arranged over two levels, along with open balustered stairs and fluted columns with acanthus capitals on the ground floor. The detailing throughout is otherwise plain. A fine Imperial stone staircase, featuring original cast-iron square balusters, ascends from the rear of the entrance hall. The interior of the rear right-hand hall, which was formerly the Reference Library and Reading Rooms, boasts a timber trussed roof with ironwork foliage spandrels, paired pilasters with swagged capitals for the display cases, a wide pilastered end doorcase, and a segmental arched recess. The small rear left-hand hall, previously the Art Gallery and Museum, also has a timber trussed roof, supported by metal tie-rods and circled spandrels.