Killiney turret home commands sea views

THE view and location of this five-bedroom Victorian house, standing between the railway line and Killiney beach, could push its price above the £1.3 million (€1.65m) guide set by Lisney for the auction on April 11th.

One half of a pair of semi-detached granite houses, Carraig na Mara may have been built by the British admiralty for its naval officers based at Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) in the mid-19th century. Certainly it enjoys a commanding view of Killiney Bay, and its crenellated turret could have served as both a widow's walk and a vantage point for gun emplacements.

Close to the DART station and the Holy Child School, the house is off the main road, which enhances an impression of taking a step back in time. Such a sensation lingers indoors, due to Carraig na Mara's odd corners, angles and intact period details.

From the high reception hallway, you enter a pair of rooms joined by double folding glazed doors. These make it possible to see the sea from both rooms. The present owners use the larger of the two rooms as a formal drawingroom. A bay window dominates the adjoining sittingroom, which is lined with bookcases. Both rooms have matching marble fireplaces and fitted gas fires, good cornicing and chandelier lights which, together with the curtains and carpets are included in the sale.

To the rear of the hall is a tiny study filling a bay window, whose French door leads down to the garden and beach.

Rising parallel to this room, the stairs follows a curving return with arched window and an embossed white dado.

There are four bedrooms on the first floor, the largest of which mirrors the sitting room below, even to the bay window, through which the lapping of the waves would lull you to sleep.

The cast iron fireplace, like those in two of the other bedrooms, has been boarded up and faced with a radiator. Removing these and the modern fitted cupboards would restore character to the rooms, while some of the windows need to be double-glazed.

As there is only one family bathroom - up another flight of stairs - new owners might choose to convert one of the bedrooms, possibly the small bunk room, into an en suite. The fourth bedroom opens into a solarium with a panorama of the bay, Bray Head and the Wicklow Mountains. As in all the best mystery stories, a plain cupboard door, in the tiny bathroom, conceals narrow steps to the turret, which cries out for a telescope.

Retracing your steps to the hall, through a wooden door and down a further flight of stairs, you arrive at garden level, where the assortment of rooms and storage space have a tangibly Victorian atmosphere.

The main living area comprises the conservatory, from which you go into the kitchen and diningroom and to the garden. The kitchen and diningroom are linked by an archway divided by a counter. The built-in presses and centre island in the kitchen are clinically white - but the sea view above the sink just might relieve the chore of washing up.

This and the dining room would convert easily to a warm family and breakfast space, while the chilly spare bedroom next door could become a TV or computer room. The rest of the basement comprises a bathroom, a large utility room with lots of built-in cupboards and a lovely brick-lined wine cellar beneath the front steps.