Bentley Hall

Bentley Hall is a substantial house combining early 17th-century and early 18th-century phases, with 19th-century additions and alterations. It is constructed of red brick with stone dressings, quoins and plinth, and is roofed in plain tiles hipped to the west end of the west wing, with brick ridge, side wall and gable stacks.

The building is arranged in an L-plan with an advanced gabled three-bay 17th-century wing to the east and a three-bay 18th-century wing to the west. The 17th-century wing rises to two storeys plus garrets, whilst the 18th-century wing is two storeys.

The 17th-century wing features continuous moulded first and second floor dripmoulds and a dentilled brick eaves band. The south façade has a central flush quoined doorcase with an original oak studded door, flanked on either side by 3-light chamfered cross windows with 20th-century leaded lights. Covering the door and supporting a bay window above is a canted porch with two banded columns to the front, each with large moulded capitals, and two tapering banded corbels with similar capitals to the rear. Flat moulded arches with rounded corners crown these supports. Above is a moulded cornice and the canted bay window itself, which features rusticated quoins to its front corners, 2-light chamfered cross windows to each side, and two semi-circular headed lights to the front with pierced spandrels, carved head keystones and a central chamfered mullion. The bay window is topped by a projecting moulded cornice and a pierced balcony of cusped circles, with 2-light chamfered mullion windows to either side above.

The east elevation displays similar chamfered cross windows, with central stair windows raised to light the half landings.

The 18th-century west wing has rusticated quoins to its western corners and a moulded eaves cornice. The north elevation features an off-centre, full height ashlar single bay with giant Corinthian pilasters topped by a plain entablature and moulded segmental pediment with laurel leaf circle, flanked by swags to the centre with a swagged urn finial above. At the base is a bolection moulded doorcase with a fluted keystone, now infilled by a glazing bar sash. To either side of the bay are blocked windows with flat gauged brick arches and stone keystones. Above, the central bay contains an original 18th-century glazing bar sash in a moulded surround, flanked by plain blocked windows. Between the central sashes are large crude 'S' scrolls forming a pediment-like feature to the lower window.

The south elevation of the west wing has a somewhat mutilated ground floor. To the west are two glazing bar sashes with flat brick arches and stone keystones which continue above as stone lintels. To the east is a shallower blocked window with flat arch and stone keystone, the lintel being considerably higher. Beyond to the east is an inserted doorcase and door. Above are four windows with alternating bolection and stepped moulded surrounds; the two western ones retain glazing bar sashes, the eastern one is partly blocked with a narrower glazing bar sash, whilst the one between is completely blocked. All these windows project upwards into the cornice above.

The interior contains two fine staircases: a 17th-century oak open-welled dog-leg staircase with shaped splat balusters, moulded handrail, diamond finials and pendentives; and an 18th-century staircase combining dog-leg and winder forms with moulded oak handrail and turned balusters featuring carved acanthus leaf knobs, between which iron twists have been inserted.

Excellent plasterwork throughout both wings includes carved moulded cornices to all 17th-century first floor rooms. The first floor landing to the 17th-century wing has bolection moulded plaster panelling to one wall and large crude swags over the doorcases. A small north bedroom and the landing display later, probably early 18th-century, plasterwork ovals on the ceilings of leaves and fruit—cruder but similar to those at Sudbury Hall. The 17th-century wing also features an oak bolection moulded fireplace in one bedroom and a large inglenook fireplace to the north ground floor room. All doors to this wing are oak and panelled. The 18th-century wing has an acanthus leaf cornice and square frieze of plasterwork above the staircase well.