Garden Walls, Towers And Grotto About 100 Metres South South West Of The Old Rectory

The following building shall be added to the list:- CLAYDON - TM 14 NW Garden walls, towers and 7/10000 grotto about 100m SSW of The Old Rectory GV II Garden walls, towers and grotto. Circa mid C19 for the Rev George Drury. Flint and brick with stone dressings; plain tile pyramidal tower roofs. High walls around an approximately rectangular garden enclosure, projecting on the NE corner and with a tower on the SE corner, another tower and polygonal spur-wall on the NW corner and an underground grotto (now filled in) immediately to the SW. The walls have buttresses and a polygonal turret on the SW corner; the east wall has a moulded 4-centre arch doorway with flanking buttress and ball finials on the raised parapet above; doorway on S side has hoodmould and moulded pointed arch doorway in NW spur-wall with flanking depressed 2-centred arches. The towers have long-and-short quoins, the NW with Saxon-type window and pigeon holes under eaves, the taller SE tower has mullion transom window and band of flint and stone chequerwork under eaves and wrought iron weathervane at apex of roof. Inner sides of the garden walls are partly faced in random brick on edge. Shaped tile coping. The underground grotto to the SW is lined in shellwork and appears to be earlier than 1850 (Pevsner). Some of the material is said to have come from the transepts and chancel (demolished 1852) of Claydon church. Note: Drury was a Tractarian. He reputedly built the garden as a Biblical allegory. Source: Buildings of England p170.

Listing NGR: TM1374149777