Pynes Cottage

Pynes Cottage comprises two cottages, now combined into one dwelling, with possible fabric dating back to the 16th century. The core of the building is 17th century, with alterations made in the 18th and 19th centuries. The walls are cob, rendered and sit on a stone plinth, and the roof is thatched, with slate on the outshut at the rear left. The original layout was likely a through-passage plan, potentially with two rooms to the right and one to the left. The left half was rebuilt in the late 18th century, increasing ceiling heights. A central room or hall features a lateral stack, and the original staircase location is uncertain.

The cottage is two storeys high with five windows. The left half features, at ground floor, late 19th century sash windows flanking a central doorway with panelled reveals. Above are three large, 2-light casements with transoms set within eyebrow eaves. The right half has a 3-light casement and a plank door with a set-in glazed light beneath a 32-pane and a 24-pane cast iron casement. There are two small brick stacks to the gables and a larger stack to the rear eaves. The rear of the building has a swept-down roof to the left and a slated outshut to the right.

The interior of the left half retains panelled reveals to the ground floor windows. It also features a fireplace with Thorverton Stone jambs supporting a wooden bressumer with scroll stops. The right half has a deep fireplace built with Thorverton Stone, a wooden bressumer, and two ovens. To the left of the fireplace is a chamfered beam, possibly of 16th century origin, identified by Reverend Peter Beacham. A spiral wooden staircase is located in the corner of this main room. Roof principals have been partly exposed, showing evidence of 18th century heightening.