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Bull Close Lane, HALIFAX, HX1 2ED

On Bull Close Lane. For an alternative view, please see Image

This is the original Hopwood House from the 16th cent with 18th cent additions and with No's 6-8; the area is in the early stages of undergoing a restoration and development project under the name of Hopwood Gateway, the new (late 18th cent) Hopwood House in the background down Hopwood Lane.

Somerset House is (or was) a substantial classical Georgian mansion designed by John Carr in the 1760s, and is grade II* listed. The house was owned by John Royds, a local merchant banker. Later the Rawson family established a bank on the premises, later to become the Union Bank. The name Somerset House was given to the property by a manager of the bank who had interests in that county. The house once had extensive grounds stretching for some way to the south. These can be seen on the OS map from the 1850s, surrounded by the growing town centre. By the 1890s Rawson Street, Powell Street and Commercial Street had been laid out, with the infill becoming more dense over the next 50 years. The infill means it is not now possible to get far enough back to show the whole building in one photo, even with a reasonably wide angle lens - there is an east wing to match that on the west, although rebuilding means the wings are not symmetrically placed. The west wing is obscured by a two storey building, and a row of free-standing shops built between the wings. All sides of the building including the long rear facade have had shop fronts inserted. Part of the rear can be seen on the right in a photo of George Street: http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/272310 The upper parts of the building have been unused for some time, but have retained high quality rococo plasterwork and chimney pieces. After a long period of neglect and abuse Somerset House is now to be renovated / redeveloped.

The plasterwork shows Aesop's fable of the bear and the honey bees. I have not been able to find this fable on-line, but from my memory of the text on the card next to the fireplace the bear investigated the hive and a single bee came out and stung it on the nose, whereupon the bear made an angry attack on the hive to steal the honeycombs, only to be attacked, stung and chased away by the whole swarm of bees. There are two morals, first that it is better to put up with a small injury than to make an angry retaliation resulting in a much worse injury, and secondly that a large number of very small creatures can defeat a much larger creature.

The plasterwork in this room, the Grand Salon, was carved by Giuseppe Cortese. It is said that it took him ten years to complete, at a cost equivalent to £200,000 in today's money. Britannia is a protrait of Mrs Royds, the owner's wife.

This building has been refurbished partly as a restaurant, but the Grand Salon is where the Calderdale Registration and Celebratory Service offer Citizenship, Marriage, Civil partnership, Child naming and Renewal of vows ceremonies. The centrepiece of the ceiling depicts Neptune, as a portrait of the original owner of the house, Mr John Royds, who made his money in the textile trade.

One of Aesop's fables. A cock, scratching for food for himself and his hens, found a precious stone and exclaimed: "If your owner had found thee, and not I, he would have taken thee up, and have set thee in thy first estate; but I have found thee for no purpose. I would rather have one barleycorn than all the jewels in the world." - The ignorant despise what is precious only because they cannot understand it.