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Summary

Description

1885. 2-storey, attic and basement, 3-bay with service wing to the W. Aberdeen bond granite to ground floor, rubble 1st floor, finely finished margins. Rough-faced base and basement course; dividing string course with billet detail to main house; chamfered reveals; curved angles to ground floor, corbelled to form right angles at 1st floor; 1st floor cill course; overhanging eaves with decoratively carved and pierced bargeboards and open half-timbered gableheads.

N (RUBISLAW DEN NORTH) ELEVATION: symmetrical; canted porch advanced to centre of ground floor, Tudor-arched doorway, pilastered panelled 2-leaf timber door, reached by stone steps, geometrically traceried fanlight, traceried and stained glass windows flanking to left and right, gabled 1st floor advanced above, broad tripartite window with blind boarded central pane; gabled bays flanking to left and right, tripartite windows to ground and 1st floors. Service wing recessed to outer right, panelled timber door with letterbox fanlight to left of ground floor, flanked by 2 small windows, bipartite and single window to 1st floor above, bipartite window to right of ground floor, gableted window to 1st floor, with louvred opening inset.

W ELEVATION: gabled; predominantly obscured by service wing, irregular fenestration, tripartite and single windows to right return, gableted tripartite window breaking eaves to 1st floor, with louvred opening inset; canted tower to re-entrant angle to right.

S (GARDEN) ELEVATION: asymmetrical; 3-bay; gabled bay to centre, glazed and panelled timber door with small-pane fanlight to right at ground floor, 2-light window flanking to left, pair of bipartite windows to 1st floor above; gabled bay to left, pair of bipartite windows off-centre to right of ground floor, deeply canted outer left angle, with small window with ogee lintel to centre, 3-light oriel window to 1st floor, harled gablehead with bipartite window inset. Gabled bay advanced to outer right, 7-light canted 1st floor, advanced 1st floor on deep corbels, tripartite window to centre, single window to chamfered outer angles.

E ELEVATION: asymmetrical; gabled bay to left, with canted bay advanced through ground and 1st floors, 2 gableted bays to right, near-regular openings.

Predominantly timber sash and case windows with small-pane upper sashes. Grey slate roof with lead ridges. Coped ridge and gablehead stacks with circular cans. Cast-iron rainwater goods.

INTERIOR: subdivided; not seen 2000.

GATEPIERS AND BOUNDARY WALLS: rough-faced square-plan granite gatepiers to N, with shallow pyramidal caps, low coped rough-faced granite wall between; rubble walls to remainder.

Statement of Special Interest

From the beginning of the 19th century Aberdeen rapidly expanded westwards from Union Street. 13 Rubislaw Den North is part of the late 19th development W of Queen's Cross. Rubislaw Den North runs almost parallel to Queen's Road (on the site of Skene Road) which was originally surrounded by the estate of Rubislaw. In 1877 Rubislaw Estate was bought by the City of Aberdeen Land Association, who re-aligned Skene Road and sold off the estate in smaller plots. Streets became wider and villas with substantial gardens often replaced terraces. Prestigious architects were often employed to produce bold and unusual designs to reflect the wealth and individuality of the clients. Like some of the adjacent properties on the S side Rubislaw Den North, the garden elevation is one of the principal elevations, the garden falls away to the North Burn of Rubislaw to the S. The villa is particularly well detailed, with highly decorative bargeboards and billet frieze.

References

Bibliography

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