Little Priory The Old House

A house, now divided into two dwellings, dating to circa 1300 with significant alterations in the late 15th century and subsequent changes. It is timber framed and plastered with red plain tiled roofs and four red brick chimney stacks. The building features gabled jettied crosswings to the right and left, with one crosswing projecting more than the other. A small, jettied gable on the first floor has a moulded soffit. The house has two stories and a cellar. The first floor has a fenestration pattern of 1:1:1:1 with various window styles, while the ground floor is 1:0:1:2:2 with a variety of windows. A four-panelled, two-light door is located on the left (The Old House), and another four-panelled, two-light door is positioned on the right.

The left crosswing and the central range appear to be of one build, dating to the late 15th century, exhibiting a substantial oak double-braced frame. Jowled storey posts are present at ground floor level, rising straight above. The main tie beam has been altered, and the integral ceiling features centre tenoned joists with moulded shoulders in the crosswing. Peg holes indicate the former position of a screen and wall bench. Remains of a brick chimney, inserted circa 1530, are visible within the crosswing. The first floor originally comprised an open hall, with a central arched and braced tie beam which has since been cut on the east side. The crosswing originally had a crown post roof structure, later modified.

The right (south) crosswing dates to circa 1300 and displays a heavy oak frame with jowled storey posts. A contemporary doorway with a carved double ogee head and contemporary oak panelling of wide, vertically-joined boards are incorporated into the ground floor. This crosswing has a fine octagonal crown post roof with moulded base and capital, featuring down bracing to the end gables, simple splayed scarfs with over squinted abutments and face pegs to the collar purlin and top plates.

The cellar is of considerable interest, with brick lining contemporary with the timber structure above, possibly the second-earliest example of brickwork in Essex after Coggeshall Abbey. An arched niche within the brickwork may have been used as a bee bole. A small area of knapped flint repair, similar to that found in the Late 15th century Priory Gatehouse, exists on the north wall; otherwise, the cellar remains unaltered.