Kirstead Hall

Kirstead Hall

Large house of the early 17th century, traditionally said to have been dated 1614. The building is constructed of brick in English bond with diapering to the facade, beneath tile and pantile roofs. It follows an E-shaped plan, with gabled bays that project only slightly, a stair bay to the rear, and a 17th-century service range to the west.

The principal south facade comprises five bays arranged over two storeys. The eastern bay is constructed of a slightly different type of brick that does not bond into the rest of the house. All windows feature rendered brick mullions and transoms with cavetto moulding. A gabled two-storey porch of plain red brick stands centrally, with a four-centred archway displaying ovolo moulding to its reveals and a moulded brick pediment above. A moulded platband runs across the facade with polygonal pinnacles at the angles. The porch gable contains a three-light window to the first floor and a 19th or 20th-century small casement to its stepped gable.

The window arrangement across the facade is detailed and complex: the 1st, 4th and 5th bays have seven-light windows; the 2nd bay contains a six-light window with a two-light cellar window below featuring cavetto moulding. First-floor bays contain six-light windows to the 1st, 2nd and 4th bays, with the 5th bay having seven lights. The projecting gabled bays to the 1st and 5th positions have moulded brick pediments. Four-light pedimented windows light the stepped gables of the 1st and 5th bays, with a further two-light pedimented window to the fourth floor of the 1st bay. A plaque with pediment adorns the gable of the 5th bay. An off-centre axial chimney stack features three clustered round shafts. Two external stacks on the west gable wall each carry three octagonal shafts joined at the top; the northern stack is enclosed by the 17th-century service wing. The central section of the east gable wall has been rebuilt, with some render remaining, probably from 17th-century window reveals.

The rear north facade comprises four bays. The eastern bay's walling has been rebuilt, probably in the 18th century, and now displays dentil eaves, cornice and a hipped roof. A gabled stair bay contains a three-light mullioned cellar window, a five-light window with pediment and a four-light window above it, and a two-light pedimented window to the stepped gable. Two blocked windows to the east wall of the stair bay are positioned above a platband, cut by a later lean-to. The platband continues on the west wall of the stair bay and across the rest of the facade between ground and first floors. An external stack in the angle between the stair bay and 3rd bay carries two polygonal shafts with repaired caps showing sawtooth dentils. The 3rd bay has a five-light mullioned window and a 20th-century door, probably set in an earlier opening. A five-light mullioned and transomed window to the first floor retains the remains of a corbelled-out stack over the door. The western gabled bay rises to four storeys with fenestration matching its facade, featuring two pairs of two-light mullioned windows to the ground floor and two pairs of two-light mullioned and transomed windows to the first floor.

The interior contains an ovolo-moulded beam to the ground floor of the east wing. All fireplaces feature four-centred brick arches with ovolo moulding. The present kitchen contains an introduced chimney bressumer, ceiling beams and joists. The principal stair displays turned balusters and newel posts with acorn tops. A spiral stair with timber newel also survives. A passage from the great hall provides access to the services and a raised chamber with cellar below, comparable to Coldham Hall in Suffolk. Some 17th-century panelling remains. The roofs employ two rows of butt purlins, with the east wing roof showing slightly heavier scantling.

The service range dates to the 17th century, constructed in English bond brick beneath a pantile roof, arranged to a three-cell plan and presenting a two-storey three-bay facade. The 20th-century casement appears in an earlier opening, whilst two three-light 19th-century casements flank a 20th-century door between. The first floor holds two four-light 20th-century casements and one 19th-century two-light window. Parapet gables feature brick kneelers. The gable wall contains two slatted openings to the ground floor beneath soldier arches and a four-light 20th-century window to the first floor under a segmental arch; a blocked attic light with soldier arch is also evident. An internal stack serves the rear wall, with 20th-century fenestration throughout. To the west of this range, at right angles and joined by a wall, stands a single-storey outbuilding with gable and rear walls of 17th-century brick and stepped gables.