Lovatts Cottage

Lovatts Cottage is an early 16th-century house, originally an open hall house, which was floored around 1550-1575. A late 17th-century brick chimney was added internally, and alterations occurred in the early 19th century to convert it into cottages, with further renovations around 1968. The house is timber-framed with brick infill and features a steep red tile roof. It is a two-storey, four-bay structure facing north. There are four casement windows on each floor, and a large internal chimney is located near the middle of the house. The casement windows are renewed. The central two bays were built as a hall open to the roof, while the end bays always had two storeys. The west bay originally contained a pantry, buttery, and staircase. The eastern bay was a parlour, with a further staircase situated in an anteroom. Beaded joists were inserted into the hall floor, and wall paintings are present in the hall and parlour, all dating to the 16th century. The wall paintings on the east wall of the hall depict three-quarter female figures, flanking or forming part of fantastic columns in a classical Renaissance style. Panelled texts in English are also visible in the parlour.