A detached l920s house on a quarter of an acre at 241 New Cabra Road, Dublin 7, is likely to exceed the £380,000 being quoted by selling agents David Gill Associates when it is auctioned on May 5th. Not far from the Phoenix Park and a short drive from the city centre, St. Colmans has five/six bedrooms, three reception rooms, lovingly cared for gardens and a great many of its original features.

A deep porch leads to a front door with leaded glass and side panels and, in stone relief on the pebble dash over the door, a graceful urn. Inside, there is a tremendous sense of space in the high-ceilinged entrance hallway, which is over 17 ft long and has intact cornice work. The two main reception rooms are to the right and left as you come in, both of them having deep bay windows. The diningroom has a fine slate fireplace with marble and tile insets and a copper canopy, picture rail and centre rose. There is a butler's pantry off this room too, entered via a pair of narrow double doors which have leaded glass insets.

Across the hall is the sittingroom with double doors leading to a family room that is part of a later extension. Two floor-to-ceiling windows make this a bright room. It has a door to the garden and one leading into the kitchen. The kitchen, which can also be accessed from the hall, is a long, narrow room and needs extensive modernisation. There is a walk-in pantry and a large alcovewhich would make an ideal space for an Aga or range cooker. Also at the end of the hall is a cloakroom with guest lavatory and an area housing the boiler.

The stairs climb to where they divide and lead, via separate steps, to two landings. Off the landing to the left is a bedroom and next to it, a bathroom. On this landing too there is a built-in wardrobe. The other landing has a bedroom, bathroom and separate toilet. From here, further steps climb to the top landing where there are three further bedrooms. These rooms are all nicely proportioned rooms with original fireplaces.

A set of narrow steps lead to an attic room, in use as a bedroom, which has an original, tonque-and-groove door and sloping ceiling.

The front garden has old roses, grass lawn and a gravelled driveway with enough room to park two cars.

The 125-ft back garden is bounded by high brick walls and has a wonderful display of cherry and lilac trees, camellias in bloom, hydrangeas, heathers, raspberry bushes and a rose garden.