Herbert Park redbrick makes fine family spread

Dublin 4: €4mA large D4 home has many family-friendly aspects. Jane Powers reports

Number 14 Herbert Park is a tall and elegant semi-detached redbrick at the corner of Arranmore Road in Ballsbridge. The three-storey house is to be auctioned by Sherry FitzGerald on November 4th, and is expected to fetch €4 million.

The owners of the seven-bedroom home are selling up after 27 years in residence. Their six children reared, they are moving onto a smaller property. And with 335 sq m (3,600 sq ft) of floor area spread over three levels, this is the perfect space for big families, especially as teenagers can be given a bit of privacy on the top floor.

The house was one of many built by Cramptons in this area around 1910. It faces north, but the principal daytime rooms are at the back, making best use of the light. It retains many of its distinctive period features, such as stained glass windows in the hall and on the two landings, and a lovely solid staircase with ornamental newel posts.

The hall door opens into a vestibule floored with decorative tiles, which extend into the adjoining lavatory. An inner hall has its own fireplace, with an oak mantel inset with a mirror and art nouveau copper panels. Indeed, all three of the reception rooms have their original fireplaces, of oak, mahogany or marble, making handsome focal points in each space.

At the front are a comfortable, book-lined study and a diningroom. The latter, which has a bay window, easily accommodates a 10-seater table and other furniture. The drawingroom is at the back, a large room that links to the garden via a timber-floored conservatory. The kitchen has two east-facing windows, one of which is a bay with built-in seating - making for a cheery breakfast area. An old creamy-coloured Aga is still chugging away in the corner, fuelled by anthracite: it was invaluable, say the owners, when they moved in during 1977, a year marked by electricity strikes. A sunny sittingroom with a bay window and sliding doors to the garden has been added on behind the kitchen. A utility room and a second lavatory complete this floor.

There are three bedrooms and a family shower room on the first floor. The main bedroom, at the front, has a bay window, and a large en suite bathroom. On the way to the upper floor, with its four further bedrooms, there is a separate lavatory. The fourth bedroom at the top (now used as a study) is long and lean, and was evidently designed to be the maid's room. If a bathroom is required at this level, this is the obvious choice, as it is directly above the main bedroom's en suite.

The front garden is a railed space, with geranium-filled beds and a lawn. In the back, the velveteen-smooth grass has been lovingly mowed into a checkerboard pattern. The borders hold an eclectic mix of ornamental plants, fruit trees and salad crops. There is a detached garage accessed via Arranmore Road, and a separate pedestrian entrance leading to a side yard.