An original marble fire surround, dating from 1810, is to be returned to its rightful place in 16 New Street, thanks to a donation of £5,000 from Bedell Cristin Trust.
Bedell Cristin director Richard Gerwat said: ‘The refurbishment of 16 New Street is an important project in terms of maintaining the Island’s rich heritage for the good of the whole community.
We are delighted to be in a position to support the trust in its quest to return this house to its original Georgian splendour.’ The acquisition of the fire surround means that the trust, who were gifted the property by the owners of de Gruchy department store, the Merchant Retail Group, will be able to restore an important feature of the once impressive house.
Drawing-room It will once again take pride of place in the drawing-room, where records reveal that a grand ball was held in 1838.
Trust chief executive Charles Alluto said: ‘We hope that in years to come, 16 New Street will be a project of which Jersey can be proud, and we are immensely grateful to Bedell Cristin Trust for the help and encouragement they have shown.’ The trust’s consultant archaeologist, Warwick Rodwell, was delighted that the surround had been found.
‘When I was doing the survey of the house I could see evidence of scars on the wall where there had been a marble fireplace.
But I thought we would never see it again.
House museum ‘It had once been a wonderful fireplace, with a Delft tile lining, which is still there having been hidden by 20th century rubble.
When the surround turned up, I said that even though it was expensive, we had to find a way of getting it back.
It is handmade so we would never be able to replace it with another one that was exactly the same.’ Once the restoration project is completed, the National Trust intends to open 16 New Street to the public as a house museum.
The property has already played a significant part in Island life.
Built in the early 18th century, as part of all the speculative development throughout the town by the Durell family, by 1787 it was known as La Grande Maison.
It was acquired by the de Gruchy family in the late 19th century, and from 1909 to 1964 the property was home to the YMCA.
