Of the 30 Protected Structures within the Sandycove Architectural Conservation Area (ACA), 23 are located on Sandycove Avenue West. From rooms at the top of number 5, you can see the roofline of the nearby Martello Tower.
And of the 74 such towers constructed around the coast of Ireland – to resisist any attack by Napoleon’s fleet – Sandycove’s is the most famous, James Joyce having spent a short period of time there. Although his sojourn was only for six nights, the tower must have had quite some impact on him, as he chose its gun platform as the setting for the opening scene of Ulysses. As a result, since 1964 the tower has been in use as a Joyce museum and visitor centre, while each Bloomsday – June 16th – literary fans take a dip in what, in his most famous work, the writer called “the snotgreen sea” at the nearby Forty Foot swimming spot and Sandycove Beach.
Joyce would have strolled past number 5, an elegant three-storey-over-basement midterrace house that’s a three-minute walk from the tower.
Houses along the avenue face westwards towards Scotsman’s Bay, named after noted civil engineer and Scotsman John Rennie, who was responsible for the construction of Howth Harbour. Number 5 was last on the market in 2017, and appears on the Property Price Register as having sold for €1.485 million in 2019. Back then it was listed with five bedrooms and had a mews building to the rear.
“It was tired at the time and we stripped back everything as we wanted to keep all its original features,” says the owner. “Looking back, I was quite naive though. Our builder, Roebuck Building Services, who were wonderful, said the floorboards were wafer thin. I had tried to source new herringbone flooring but as it was lockdown it was proving impossible. But the builders found French pine beams from the 16th century which we used as flooring in the hall and ground floor rooms.”
In addition, they sourced chimney pieces from Belle Cheminee to be more in keeping with the property’s heritage in lieu of the 1950s reproduction fireplaces in both reception rooms.
Now, after rewiring, replumbing and reroofing, and a full renovation, there isn’t a thing out of place in the entire 291sq m (3,132sq ft) midterrace house. What was a series of “old extensions out the back” has been made more streamlined, with a bespoke kitchen, which the builders created along with lots of panelling throughout the three-storey house. The kitchen now has Neff, Fischer & Paykel and Liebherr appliances, and overlooks the rear garden through a wall of glazing.
It has your usual layout of an early Victorian terraced home but many of its features are simpler, giving a more Georgian feel to the place. Details such as subtle radiators along with lighting sourced at vintage shops in France add to the decor, as does a simple neutral colour palette that acts as a backdrop for the couple’s art collection.
[ Charming Ranelagh mews with grape vine in the garden for €1.05mOpens in new window ]
Besides the two interconnecting rooms on the ground floor, a further reception room in the form of a livingroom lies at garden level, while the piano nobile has been reinstated on the first floor, where the family now house their book collection. Views are quite amazing, allowing vistas over Scotsman’s Bay across to maritime comings and goings at the East Pier in Dún Laoghaire.
The property, which is Ber exempt, when last purchased had five bedrooms; it now has four – one at garden level, two on the second floor, and the principal on the first floor has a fine dressingroom and ensuite.
Owners decided to remove the original mews to the rear of the property as the location is an ACA, so there is no parking to the front. To address this, they constructed an electric roller door where the mews once stood that leads to two private parking spaces, alongside a low-maintenance garden.
Blending timeless elegance with contemporary comforts is what owners have achieved in restoring this exceptional home at one of Sandycove’s most prestigious addresses. As the owners are downsizing in Dalkey, they have placed their lovely maritime home on the market through Sherry FitzGerald, seeking €2.25 million.
