Shell Summerhouse, 70 Metres North West Of Nettlestead Chace

The Shell Summerhouse, located 70 metres north-west of Nettlestead Chace, is an early 19th-century structure, possibly dating around 1800. It has an octagonal plan with a diameter of about 2.5 meters. The summerhouse is timber-framed and clad in wattle and daub, featuring rustic half-logs. Its conical thatched roof is topped with a finial at the apex.

Three of the walls are open, while the remaining walls contain internal fixed wooden benches. The ceiling is designed in an octagonal pyramid shape beneath the rafters, adorned with panels of yellow, grey, and pink coarse plaster arranged in fans and other geometric shapes, all delicately outlined with borders made primarily of whelk shells. This creates a rustic ceiling effect reminiscent of the Adam style. Various types of shells, including cockles, oysters, limpets, and occasionally conch or coral, are embedded in the plaster within the panels. Despite repairs following storm and bomb damage, the overall integrity of the summerhouse remains largely intact.