Munstead Wood

Munstead Wood is a house dating from 1896-7, designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens for Gertrude Jekyll and built by Thomas Underwood. The construction utilizes coursed Bargate stone blocks, incorporating some half-timbering, and features plain tiled roofs that sweep out to the eaves, with hipped gables on the main range. Its plan is half-H shaped, with a projecting hipped wing to the left of the centre, creating a U-shaped entrance court. The house stands two storeys high and is distinguished by prominent brick stacks on moulded plinths with corbelled tops, some of which are placed diagonally.

The elevation facing the drive displays a wall with breathers positioned under tile-on-edge lintels at eaves. A round arched door leads to a corridor with tile-on-edge bands to the arch. Above are four wood-framed, leaded casement windows on the first floor, and five windows below; the outer two have flat tile-on-edge lintels, while the central pair have cambered heads. An oversailing gable is present to the left, and a pentice-catslide to the right. A ribbed door with original door fittings is located at the end of the corridor.

The entrance front is a double-hipped range to the left, leading to a cobbled court, with walls and a wooden gallery over a kitchen range, all approached through buttressed walls. A half-glazed door and a low window are set into the end wall. To the right is a gabled wing, and a jettied half-timbered range connects the two wings. This section features ogee bracing and continuous leaded fenestration on the first floor within projecting frames. A door and window, under a common segmental head, are incorporated into the gable end of the right-hand wing. A paved circular area sits between the wings. The right-hand return front includes a massive stack to the left of centre and displays two first-floor and two ground-floor windows, along with a between-floors window and a 12-light casement on the right. The garden front features two gables centrally, each with one first-floor and two ground-floor windows, a central door, and a hipped wing to the right.

Inside, a 6-bay gallery spans the centre of the first floor, topped with a queen strut roof and panelled walls. Originally, the house was situated within a "wild" garden designed by Gertrude Jekyll, which included a formal court to the north and kitchen gardens. This garden has been recognised on the Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England.