One of the last virtually untouched Georgian houses on the north side of Merrion Square is to be auctioned by Lisney next month with an estimated guide price of £1.5 million. Number 17 Merrion Square was lived in for over half a century by the late Dr John Shanley, who used the front ground floor rooms as consulting rooms. Dr Shanley, who lived to be over 100, was well-known in medical circles as the founder of the Irish Red Cross, which has its headquarters in the house next door. Dr Shanley was also one of the physicians who attended the autopsy on Michael Collins.
The north side of Merrion Square was the first to be built in 1762 on land belonging to the sixth Viscount Fitzwilliam of Merrion, whose name is perpetuated in the nearby streets. These are of rusticated granite up to first floor level and mellow redbrick above this. The floor area of the house is around 6,000 sq ft and the long, narrow, rear garden stretches to 124 ft in length. All the interior period features are untouched, including massive old brass locks with matching keys and magnificent cornicing. The interior is gracious, if faded, and offers an exciting challenge to lovers of Dublin's Georgian heritage. The garden level, once the kitchen and servants' quarters, houses wine cellars and store rooms.
Dr Shanley later installed a kitchen and breakfast room on the ground floor return. The ground floor accommodation includes the former consulting room which has a mahogany surround fireplace and a tall window overlooking the square. At the back, there is a dining room, also with a later-period fireplace. Both these rooms have beautiful cornicing, which is matched in the upstairs drawing rooms. The wide mahogany staircase has decorative carving on the sides. A tall, segmented window lights the half-landing and this is repeated on the second floor return. The first floor drawing room spans the width of the front and has three tall windows overlooking the square. The chimney piece here is marble with a brass insert.
A second sitting room leads off this - possibly a "with drawing room" for the ladies of the house - and this has a matching marble fireplace. There is a bathroom and two bedrooms on the next floor with cast-iron fireplaces and cupboards. The top floor is laid out as an apartment at present, with a sitting room, two bedrooms and kitchenette. The back garden is overgrown and does not have rear access. There is a tall ash tree and an enclosed lower yard with store sheds.
