Survey Data
Reg No
12404601
Rating
Regional
Categories of Special Interest
Architectural, Artistic
Previous Name
Rockland House
Original Use
House
In Use As
Hotel
Date
1805 - 1815
Coordinates
261668, 112486
Date Recorded
15/12/2004
Date Updated
--/--/--
Description
Detached three-bay two-storey over basement house, built 1810, on a square plan; three-bay two-storey rear (west) elevation. Extended, 1999, producing present composition to accommodate alternative use. Flat topped hipped slate roof with roll moulded ridge tiles, paired rendered central chimney stacks having concrete capping supporting yellow terracotta pots, and cast-iron rainwater goods on slightly overhanging timber eaves with cast-iron downpipes. Rendered, ruled and lined walls. Segmental-headed central door opening approached by flight of three tooled cut-limestone steps between replacement mild steel railings, timber doorcase with panelled pilasters supporting monolithic archivolt framing glazed timber panelled door having sidelights on panelled risers below fanlight. Square-headed window openings with drag edged dragged cut-limestone sills, and concealed dressings framing nine-over-six (ground floor) or six-over-six (first floor) timber sash windows. Square-headed window openings in tripartite arrangement to rear (west) elevation with drag edged dragged cut-limestone sills, timber mullions, and concealed dressings framing six-over-six timber sash windows having two-over-two sidelights. Interior including (ground floor): central hall retaining carved timber surrounds to door openings framing timber panelled doors, and picture railing below moulded plasterwork cornice to ceiling; and carved timber surrounds to door openings to remainder framing timber panelled doors with carved timber surrounds to window openings framing timber panelled shutters on panelled risers. Set in wooded grounds.
Appraisal
A house representing an integral component of the early nineteenth-century domestic built heritage of south County Kilkenny with the architectural value of the composition suggested by such attributes as the deliberate alignment maximising on panoramic vistas overlooking the River Suir with the Waterford City skyline as a backdrop; the compact near square plan form centred on a Classically-detailed doorcase showing a simple hub-and-spoke radial fanlight; and the diminishing in scale of the widely spaced openings on each floor producing a graduated visual impression with the principal "apartments" showing Wyatt-style tripartite glazing patterns. Having been well maintained, the form and massing survive intact together with substantial quantities of the original fabric, both to the exterior and to the interior where contemporary joinery; restrained chimneypieces; and sleek plasterwork refinements, all highlight the artistic potential of the composition. Furthermore, an adjacent coach house-cum-stable outbuilding (----) continues to contribute positively to setting of a suburban estate having historic connections with Lieutenant-Colonel William Snow (1795-1857) '[of] Rockland county Kilkenny' (Waterford News 1st May 1857, 3); and John Newsom White (1844-1916) 'late of Rocklands County Kilkenny' (Calendars of Wills and Administrations 1916, 721).