Cerne Abbey

Cerne Abbey is a private house situated on the site of, and incorporating parts of, a late medieval monastic gatehouse. Fragments from the 15th century survive, including a front gate arch and buttress, and a side entrance to the former porter's lodge. The main structure was largely destroyed by fire in the mid-18th century and rebuilt from the late 18th century onwards. The walls are constructed of knapped flint and banded stone. A section of a 15th-century chamfered arch is exposed in the south wing, which was the former gateway, and a 15th-century buttress with set-offs stands immediately to the left of this. The roof is of stone slate with gable ends and three gables to the front, each with a ball finial. Stone stacks with moulded cornices, dating from the 18th century, are positioned at the main gable ends and along the ridge, west of the centre. The house has two storeys and attics, with irregular fenestration to the south elevation. This elevation features stone mullion windows with separate labels, and 20th-century metal casements. The south wing windows are four-light, transomed with pointed arches within a square head, each with a separate label. The first floor includes a Venetian-type window with a transom and Y-tracery to the centre lights, also with a returned label. A front door, constructed in the 17th-century style and dating from around the 19th century, has jambs, imposts, and a round head. An inner door on the north wall, dating from the 16th century, has moulded jambs and a depressed-arch head. The north-west wing, originally a cow-house and later servant’s quarters, has a slate roof and 1½ storeys, with five windows containing two-light 20th-century stone mullions, labels above, and 20th-century metal casements with lead lights. A plank door is positioned at the centre. Inside the south wing, a rebate of the gateway jamb remains, with two iron hinge-pins in situ, as does part of the depressed-arch head. A small doorway, presumed to lead to a lodge, is visible in the west wall with stone jambs and a segmental-pointed head. In the east room, a stone fireplace features bracketed mouldings and a square moulded head. Above this are three main stone panels: the outer two feature quatrefoils in lozenges, the central panel bears an I.V. monogram and mitre, for Abbot John Vanne (1458-70), and above this, a moulded cornice exhibits eight carved conventional paterae.