Historic building boasting unique dragon carving goes up for sale
Tudor House, one of the oldest buildings in Diss, which is up for sale. Picture: Simon Parkin - Credit: Simon Parkin
Another of the most historic buildings in Diss, the Grade II listed Tudor House, is looking for a new owner after being put up for sale.
The timber-framed building that dates back to the 15th century is a former merchant's home and is one of the oldest buildings in the town.
It is on the market with a guide price £300,000 and if sold would be the second iconic building in Diss to change hands after the recent sale of the 16th century Dolphin House.
The three-storey Tudor House, which also has a basement, stands in a prominent position at the junction of Market Hill and St Nicholas Street in the Diss Heritage Triangle.
It boasts a unique historic feature called the 'Dragon Post', a carved beam that on one side depicts the Annunciation with the archangel Gabriel and the Virgin Mary, and on the other the Nativity.
Research into the history of the building was carried out as part of Diss Heritage Triangle, the £3m five-year project to revive the historic centre of the town.
An information board put up as part of the scheme states: "The earliest parts of Tudor House date from around 1420, though much changed over the passage of time. Even so, its 'jetty' — the overhang — still looks much as it would have done in 1550. Most striking is the so-called 'Dragon Post', the carved beam supporting the jetty.
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"The size of the building, the carved dragon post and, moulded floor joints and arched roof trusses indicate it would have been owned by wealthy and high status people.
"The proximity of the building to St Nicholas Chapel, now demolished, makes it probable the building was built by a cloth merchant."
In the 1830s the building is known to have been home to a surgeon called Philip Harrison and since then has housed a succession of shops including seed and grain merchants.
Today the building, being sold through Diss-based Chapman Chartered Surveyors, is let to three businesses; Albrights of Diss, Harriets Home and Garden and Our Slice of Country Life and is being advertised as an "investment property" with an annual rental income of £22,800.
Its sale offers a second opportunity to own a bit of the town's history after the Grade II listed Dolphin House next to the town market place was sold earlier this month.