St Peters Court

GREAT BRICETT THE STREET TM 05 SW 5/108 St. Peter's Court 9.12.55

II

House; c.1500, with early and late C16 alterations. A 3-cell house, the nucleus consisting of an open hall of Wealden type. 2 storeys. Timber-framed and plastered; the close-studding of all 3 phases fully exposed with plaster infill panels. Plaintiled roof with axial C17 chimney of red brick. Mainly late C20 oak cavetto-mullioned windows, many in original openings. C20 oak-framed entrance porch with plank door; reused C17 ovolo-mullioned windows in the porch with leaded glazing. The 2-bay open hall is all that survives of the original house, formerly having a cross-entry to right. The open truss has a cambered tie-beam with cranked arch braces and shafts beneath (one damaged). Evidence for a crownpost (roof renewed C20). Good tension-braced close studding. The upper wall framing, although damaged, gives clear evidence for Wealden-type construction, although with unusual details: the flying wall-plate at the overhanging eaves has been removed, but mortices for its supporting braces remain. The rear wall has had reversed assembly at the open truss, and the crownpost was not central upon its tie-beam. These features are all associated with the asymmetrical roof over a Wealden house. What is not normal is evidence for an unjettied service cell to right of the hall, implying that the flying wallplate continued to the end of the building. Circa 1530, an upper floor was inserted over the lower bay of the hall; a fine moulded and brattished beam supporting the roll-and-cavetto moulded joists; a similarly moulded dais beam was attached to the upper end of the hall. Also c.1530 the service cell was demolished and a parlour block built; it has a massive moulded bridging beam and unchamfered joists. An external doorway at this end has an arched head with sunk spandrels. In late C16, the original parlour cell to left was rebuilt, with good close-studding, 2-tier butt-purlin roof, and arched parlour fireplace.

Listing NGR: TM0395650692