Clarke Hall

1. ABERFORD 5115 (East Side) Clarke Hall SE 32 SW 11/1 14.7.53.

II*

1. Late C17 house. Symmetrical 2 storey, 5-bay building with central porch projection and amll projecting side wings, with canted corners, under low pitched gables. Soft red brick with sandstone quoins and dressings, including urn finials to porch bay, high plinth. Stone mullioned and transomed leaded casements, mouldings badly weathered. Oak filleted plank door under flattened Tudor arch with hollow chamfer. Low pitched hipped stone flagged roof. South front has right projecting wing added shortly after house was built in similar style and materials with a shaped gable end, belay chimney of 2 diagonal shafts. 2 large stacks of conjoined diagonal shafts on main roof. Restored as a centre for local studies by the County Council; rooms now returned to original functions. Notable interior features include a handsome oak staircase with pierced profile balusters, near-contemporary fireplaces (some brought from elsewhere) wainscoting and ceilings with deep moulded cornices and narrow raised borders. The most important feature is a splendid late C17 plaster ceiling in the dining room: an owl medallion framed in cable moulding holds stylized plant clusters and larger similar form fill the field around. All are lively and 3-dimensional; it is suggested that their oriental character may be derived from imported chintzes. Formal C17 style garden laid out to south of house. Small modern extensions to east.

Listing NGR: SE3420522116