Mompesson House

Mompesson House, built in 1704 for Sir Thomas Mompesson, is a Grade I listed building located in The Close. The house features two storeys and an attic, constructed from ashlar stone on a projecting plinth. It has a raised first-floor string and a moulded and bracketed cornice that is broken forward over the central window on the first floor. The roof is hipped and covered with old tiles, and there are three dormers with moulded wood cornices and small paned sash windows.

On the first floor, there are seven windows, with the central window having a raised architrave surround, a moulded cill on a raised apron, and supporting side scrolls with carved enrichment. The ground floor has six windows and a central eight-panel door, which features egg-and-tongue enrichment around the panels, set in a moulded and enriched wood frame. This door is surrounded by a bold stone bolection surround, a moulded cornice, and a broken curved pediment with a central cartouche and carved supporting swags, all resting on carved scroll brackets. The flanking windows of the central bay are two panes wide, while the others are three panes wide. The interior is exceptionally fine, showcasing contemporary panelling, a staircase, and enriched plaster ceilings.

To the right of Mompesson House is a later service wing, which is two storeys high and built of brick with a moulded stone cornice and a brick parapet featuring recessed panels above the windows and moulded stone coping. This wing has five windows on the first floor and four on the ground floor, along with an eight-panel door to the right in a wood Doric doorcase that includes pilasters, a triglyph frieze, and a modillioned cornice with a pediment. The block ends with a slightly projecting bay that has a similar cornice, broken over and carried in a pediment. There is a three-centred arched entry with a chamfered stone surround, a triple key block, and lodged doors, along with a panelled door head and a semi-circular three-light window in the tympanum.

Mompesson House and the other listed buildings in The Close form an outstanding group.