| 38–39 Bayley Lane | |
| Status: | Destroyed |
| Owner: | Herbert Art Gallery and Museum |
| Address: | Bayley Lane |
| Location Town: | Coventry |
| Location Country: | United Kingdom |
| Completion Date: | 14th century |
38–39 Bayley Lane is a former building, whose present-day site is accessible from the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum in Coventry, England. All that remains is the medieval undercroft, a fourteenth-century cellar that initially belonged to a wealthy merchant, who was a clothier. The undercroft is built with sandstone with a stone-ribbed vault for added security and strength.[1] It is a Grade I listed building.
The area of Bayley Lane that the building was located in was occupied by wealthy merchants in the late medieval period.[1] Following the earlier levelling of Coventry Castle, the area would have been undeveloped. Bayley Lane likely emerged as a route through the former castle bailey or outer court.[1]
The status of the area grew after the establishment of St Mary's Guildhall, followed by the construction of Drapers Hall.
The property belonged to the Benedictine Priory and the earliest-known tenant was Robert Allesley, a girdler.[1]
The cellar of 38–39 Bayley Lane is much smaller than the similar undercroft beneath St Mary's Guildhall, further along Bayley Lane[2] which is used as a restaurant.
The undercroft consists of two square bays making a rectangular room (just over 21feetby11feetft (byft)).[1] There are two separate entrances, one by which the cellar is entered from Herbert Art Gallery and Museum in the west and another, which is blocked after a few steps, in the east.[1] There are niches in the western and southern walls which were used to store valuable goods.[3]
The local topography allowed the cellar to be lit on the northern side with a window.[1]