Dovecote

The dovecote, dating from the 16th century, is situated at the angle of the garden wall. It has an irregular octagonal shape topped with a conical (hipped) tile roof that features a finial. The eaves are supported by heavy beams on projecting brackets. The structure is made of red brick in English bond with an incomplete diaper pattern of blue headers, and it has offset and plinths. The doorway is framed with a heavy solid frame, and above it, there is a dormer with a weather-boarded front that includes ledges and pigeon holes. Inside, the dovecote is circular, lined with pigeon holes made from chalk blocks arranged in four bands of five levels, interspersed with brick bands. A potence, which is a vertical spindle with arms reinforced by brackets, supports a ladder for accessing the pigeon holes, and it is fixed between the roof framing and a block in the center of the floor.