Lime Kiln At Mousehold Court

The Lime Kiln at Mousehold Court is a structure dating from around 1780 to 1820, built from red brick and flint. The main workings of the kiln are located below ground, originally accessed by a staircase leading down a shaft. Currently, access is provided by a 20th-century ladder down another shaft that was previously used for hauling up sacks of lime. The original staircase leads to a circular gallery with a flint base and a brick arch made of voussoirs that encircles the base of the kiln. The bowl of the kiln, which is approximately 5 meters in diameter, has air and stoke holes at its base, along with grilles for removing the lime. Once fired, the kiln would burn continuously for a year, requiring only stoking. It remained in operation until 1968, making it the last working lime kiln in the city and reputedly the last of its kind in Britain. Although the machine used for grinding chalk on the surface has been removed, the shape of the kiln is marked in the 20th-century landscaped courtyard, which also features a trap door leading to the underground structure. The interior was not inspected during the re-survey.