Pickenham Hall

Pickenham Hall is a country house built between 1902 and 1905 for banker G.W. Taylor, designed by architect Robert Weir Schultz, while incorporating elements from an earlier house by W.J. Donthorn. The building is constructed of red brick and features hipped plain-tiled roofs. It has two storeys and attics, with the east facade comprising five bays, each containing three windows. The second and fourth bays have canted two-storey projections topped with shaped attic gables that include Venetian windows. The windows are cross-casements with glazing bars and have keyed rubbed brick arches above them. The first and fifth bays feature central doorways beneath semi-circular hoods supported by brackets, with spandrels decorated with carved brick foliage by Laurence Turner. The central ground floor openings have segmental arched heads, and the building is accented with rusticated brick quoins and a modillion eaves cornice.

The main entrance is located on the west side and is symmetrical, featuring a central doorway that is recessed under a semicircular broken pediment. The tympanum displays a coat of arms flanked by figures of boys. The door surround is rusticated with pilasters and has a stone cornice supported by paired brackets, with additional carving attributed to Laurence Turner. The outer bays also include two-storey canted projections. A tall staircase window features three transoms and a circular window below it, while the wide modillion eaves are complemented by gabled attic dormers with 2-light casements. The chimney stacks are symmetrically placed, with the two inner stacks being cruciform in plan and the two outer stacks featuring triple diagonally-set shafts.

The south facade includes a central loggia with two semicircular arches supported by a central Ionic pier and plain responds, featuring a plastered vaulted ceiling and two pairs of segmental-headed glazed doors. Above the loggia is a balcony with a balustrade made of diagonal pierced brickwork. The loggia is flanked by square two-storey bays that have balconies and shaped attic gables, which contain tripartite casements with segmental heads and curved glazing bars. To the north, there is a lower two-storey double pile service range that features three massive chimney stacks along the ridge line.