Dalden Tower

Dalden Tower is a scheduled Ancient Monument, representing the fragmentary remains of a medieval hall or tower house, dating from the 14th century or slightly earlier. The structure features roughly dressed limestone and sandstone walls with rubble infill, and has a rectangular plan measuring approximately 10 by 15 metres. The north, east, and west walls are about 1.5 metres thick and rise up to 8 metres high, while the south wall is lower.

The north wall includes an irregular opening and remnants of a rebated jamb at ground level, along with a corbel course at the first floor. The west wall has a chimney recess and a fragmentary jamb at the south-west corner. The east wall, which adjoins the low south wall, also contains a chimney recess and features a decorated rectangular niche at first floor level, likely dating from the early 14th century. This niche is framed by attached colonnettes and has a roughly square panel adorned with an ogee arch and reticulated tracery in the tympanum, along with four carved representations of traceried windows. The lintel above the niche has a worn decorative feature crowning the arch and two flanking shields. The rebates within the niche suggest it once held a wooden shelf, likely used as a buffet for displaying plate or food.

The east wall continues to the left and includes a dressed stone jamb and the remains of a splayed opening at ground level. Excavations conducted between 1965 and 1966 uncovered further significant remains of the structure.