Pithouse Cottages

Pithouse Cottages is a former open-hall cruck-framed house located in Mapledurham, dated to 1454/5, with ceilings added in the 17th century and further alterations made in the 19th and 20th centuries. The building features a timber frame with wattle and daub infill, along with brick additions. It has a deep tiled roof that is hipped at the west end and gabled at the east, featuring two brick chimney stacks and gabled dormers—one on the north side and two on the south. The house is 1½ storeys tall, with the south front displaying three windows at the ground floor and three doorways, primarily consisting of two-light, four-pane casements.

Inside, there are three full cruck trusses, although the eastern truss was removed in the mid-20th century. This forms a three-bay house, with a two-bay hall that serves both hall and service areas, featuring a mantle beam open truss. The position of the smoke louvre is visible on the lower side of this truss. A 17th-century chimney stack has been inserted at the chamber end to serve both areas. Most of the original roof, which includes curved windbraces, remains beneath the later tiled roof. At the upper end of the hall, there is a blocked window with diagonally set mullions, which is partially above and partially below an inserted 17th-century floor made of wide boards and a stop-chamfered spine beam.