Description

1884-5. 2-storey, 3-bay asymmetrical Scots Baronial house (now offices) of L-plan with wings projecting to rear. Stugged and cherry-cocked Hildasay granite walls with droved sandstone ashlar dressings and details. Base course, chamfered arrises at windows. Crowstepped gables and dormerheads.

E (ENTRANCE) ELEVATION: asymmetrical; right bay advanced and gabled; 2-storey, 3-light canted window with string and cills courses, and crenellated parapet; window centred in gablehead above. Square plan single storey porch with crenellated parapet in re-entrant angle (centre bay); accessed by stone steps with flanking cast-iron lamp standards (with modern lamps) on square and octagonal stone bases; 4-panel timber entrance door with plate glass fanlight above; 12-pane fixed-light in side elevation; bipartite dormer window at 1st floor breaking eaves in crowstepped stone dormerhead. Bipartite windows at ground and 1st floor in bay to left, dormered 1st floor window matching centre bay.

S ELEVATION: gable end of principal elevation with window centred at ground, and at ground and 1st floors to outer left.

W (REAR) ELEVATION: windows at ground and 1st floors in bay to outer right; 1st floor breaking eaves in crowstepped stone dormerhead. Gabled wing advanced at left, partially obscured at left by modern addition, window centred at ground, 1st floor window offset to right, small window centred in gablehead.

N ELEVATION: 4-bay near-symmetrical elevation; centre bays closely spaced in slightly advanced chimneygable with blank plaque in gablehead. Blank in bay to outer right. Modern addition slightly recessed and extending to right. Windows at ground and 1st floors in bay to outer left, 1st floor window breaking eaves in crowstepped stone dormerhead.

Plate glass timber sash and case windows. Purple-grey slate roof with modern metal gutters and downpipes with hoppers. Stugged ashlar apex stacks to N and S gables, both coped with octagonal cans.

BOUNDARY WALLS AND GATEPIERS: random rubble boundary walls with concrete cope to N, E, and S. Stugged and droved square gatepiers to NW gate; corniced gablet caps. Matching gatepiers to pedestrian gate at NE and S entrance gate.

Statement of Interest

Lystina House was built for the prominent merchant, George Reid Tait. In his book, Manson refers to it as "breaking away from the conventional ideas of house building which had prevailed in Lerwick so long. Standing entirely in its own grounds, surrounded by broad walks, and having a splendid sea view, Lystina House is a fine example of what a private house should be". The modern addition to the W has been well designed so that the character of the building has not been compromised. The N gable provides a striking end piece when looking S along Market Street.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q77770572

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

• 
  Worcestershire Revised Edition (Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  London 1: The City of London: City of London v. 1 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Setting up a Listed Building Heritage Partnership Agreement: Historic England Advice Note 5
• 
  Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  [(Cumberland and Westmorland)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1967)
• 
  Devon (Pevsner Buildings of England)