Description

SAFFRON WALDEN

TL5338 CASTLE STREET
669-1/1/78 (North side)
28/11/51 No.55
(Formerly Listed as:
CASTLE STREET
Nos.53 AND 55
Five Bells Inn)

GV II

House, former inn. C15, altered in C18 and extended in early
C19. Timber-framed, rendered and colourwashed, rear addition
in flint and brick. 2 storey with C20 clay tiled roof. Plan
irregular, original T shape plus several rear additions.
Front S elevation: 2 window range parallel to street with
projecting cross-wing at E end. Windows irregular, ground
floor, W-E, doorway with moulded architrave and 4 recessed
panel door, 2 similar early C19 triple sash windows, bead
moulded, 1x2, 2x2, 1x2 panes. Cross-wing, doorway with
overlight, door C20 boarded, battened and studded, early C19
triple sash window with glazing bars, 1x4, 2x4, 1x4 panes.
First floor, W-E, 2 similar late C18 sash window with moulded
architraves, glazing bars, 4x4 panes, smaller late C18 sliding
sash window with moulded architrave, glazing bars, 4x3 panes,
cross-wing, one sash window similar to the principal 2 to W.
The plastering of the principal range has remains of panelled
basket decorated pargetting, also simple wooden moulding
beneath the eaves. C18/C19 stacks seen behind ridge of
principal range and set back over gable of cross-wing.
Rear, N elevation: principal range and gabled cross-wing with
2 additional gabled extensions W of cross-wing of differing
depths, also gabled ground floor addition to cross-wing. Roof
of central addition carried over yard to rear section of
cross-wing to create a passage/porch over back door on W side
of cross-wing. Simple doorway with overlight, door of 4
fielded panels. Cross-wing ground floor extension of flint and
brick has C20 2-light casement window, Inner W face has side
door with 4 recessed panels. Cross-wing first floor has C20
2-light casement window. Central addition of flint and brick
has ground floor sash window with glazing bars, 4x4 panes.
First floor, C20 3-light casement window with glazing bars,
6x3 panes. W gabled addition set back, of rendered timber,
ground floor early C19 door in simple surround with 4 flush
reeded panels, adjacent sash window probably contemporary,
glazing bars, 4x4 panes. First floor, similar window. 3 red
brick stacks c1600 are over centre of E cross-wing, behind the
central addition and lateral to the principal range behind
gable of W cross-wing.
E elevation to public pathway from Castle Street to recreation
ground. Side of cross-wing with lower 2-storeyed pantiled
extension and further single storey block to N. Ground floor,
C20 casement window and 2 early C19 sash windows. First floor,
2-light casement, one light has plain C20 glass and the other
has old glazing with glazing bars, 3x3 panes. Plasterwork at S
end first floor level has remains of panelled basket
pargetting.
INTERIOR: outline of C15 medieval hall-house and contemporary
cross-wing is clear. Hall wall plate below front first floor
windows indicates 2 bays with tie-beam dovetail and rafter
seatings. Gap in stud pegs on W bay shows probable site of
hall window. Cross-wing originally jettied (now underbuilt)
and cross passage ran through between present front and back
doors within the cross-wing. Service door head-recesses in
ceiling joists remain, also a vertical recess for head of
original front door. Roof over hall was raised in C18 by thin
stud walling to accommodate upper floor, some old sooted
rafters re-used with redundant collar joints. Hall roof
probably hipped at W end as pargetted exterior wall of No.51
(qv) extant. Cross-wing wall framing on W side visible with
tension braced centre post, also studs have Roman numeral
carpenters' marks. Site of first floor chamber window denoted
by full-width shutter groove and one moulded mullion now
turned round. Also shutter groove evidence in E wall of
adjacent 2-light window looking along street. Matching
evidence of a window in W wall also with sill. Cross-wing
crown-post roof remains. 2 bays undecorated with stout curved
2-way braces to central crown-post, cambered tie-beam below
with mortices for arched bracing. Collar purlin has a splayed
scarf joint with under-squinted abutment in rear bay. Foot
tension bracing of rear gable survives, peg holes denote
similar bracing once in gable to street. Cellar beneath old
hall range partly cut into unlined chalk, some reused joists.
The house is of particular architectural interest as the
cross-passage is `under-shot', i.e. it lies within the
cross-wing and not the hall, a feature seen in some Wealden
houses (Nos.27 and 29 Bridge Street (qv) and it was probably
done to provide more space in a hall of relatively short
length.
(The Buildings of England: Pevsner N & Ratcliffe E: Essex:
London: 1965-: 337).

Listing NGR: TL5371838707

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q26569835

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Central Leinster: Kildare, Laois and Offaly (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  Dorset (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Pioneers of Modern Design: From William Morris to Walter Gropius (Penguin Art & Architecture)
• 
  Northamptonshire: Buildings of England Series (Pevsner Architectural Guides) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Kent: North East and East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)