PEZPH : 1992.1190 - Penlee House

Postcard

Acc.no: PEZPH : 1992.1190

Identification

Item: The Egyptian House, Penzance

Description: This postcard of the Egyptian House, 6-7 Chapel Street, Penzance when it appears to have been a shop, was posted on 18 December 1911, and is a Christmas greeting apparently from Joan and Betty to J Legg. On 3 April 1835, John Lavin, mineralogist of Penzance bought the house from James Tregurthen of the Isles of Scilly. The architect for the new Egyptian Hall was John Foulston. The interest in Egyptology was fanned by interest in Lord Nelson and the 1798 Battle of the Nile. Lavin housed his mineral collection here. Eventually, it was sold by his son to the Oxford University Museum. The premises became a series of shops with accommodation above. In 1960 Norman Shipton renovated the building and Paul Pearn, ARIBA, exposed the original look of the building. The Landmark Trust manages it in 2013 with shops on the ground floor and holiday accommodation on the upper stories.