Praeneste is a Grade II* listed building in the West Oxfordshire local planning authority area, England. First listed on 27 August 1957. Garden loggia.
Praeneste
- WRENN ID
- veiled-span-thunder
- Grade
- II*
- Local Planning Authority
- West Oxfordshire
- Constituency
- Bicester and Woodstock MP: Calum Miller (LD)
- Country
- England
- Date first listed
- 27 August 1957
- Type
- Garden loggia
- Address
- Praeneste, Rousham
- OS grid reference
- SP 477 244
- Coordinates
- 51.91631, -1.30689
- Source
- Historic England listing
Description
Praeneste is a garden loggia built between 1738 and 1740 by William Kent. It is constructed from rusticated limestone with ashlar dressings and ironstone used for the imposts and plinths, topped with a flat lead roof. The loggia features a 7-bay arcade with open-pedimented arches. At the top of the rear wall, a balustrade is adorned with terms of Jason and Hercules. Inside, the floor is stone-flagged, and the space includes quadripartite-vaulted bays that alternate with niches for statues. Each bay has a garden seat designed by Kent, featuring curved backs, turned legs, and finely-carved details. This loggia serves as an important 'hinge' in the layout of the gardens, guiding visitors past the balustrade with the Dying Gaul and offering a view of the arcade on the return walk along the river. The design is inspired by the larger terraced forecourt of the Temple of Fortune at Palestrina near Rome and is part of the landscape gardens created by William Kent around 1733 to 1740. Rousham Park, where Praeneste is located, is listed in the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission Register of Parks and Gardens at Grade I.
Local climate
Praeneste sits in a drier-than-average part of the UK, with an average of 740 mm of rain a year. This makes it drier than 76% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is lower than that of 69% of listed buildings.
It experiences an average of 37 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 66% of listed buildings. Of these, 17 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.
Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.
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- Detailed attributes — period, style, materials, features
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