Higher Luscombe Cottage

Cottage, formerly a farmhouse. Built in the early to mid 16th century and remodelled and extended in the early 17th century. The lower left end was demolished at an unknown date, and a rear outshut was added in the late 18th or 19th century. The building is constructed of local stone rubble; the right section of the front wall is coursed and dressed slate. The roof is covered in asbestos slate with gabled ends, the roof at the left hand end sitting at a lower level. A late 19th or 20th century red brick stack serves the axial chimney to the left of centre.

The original plan consisted of three rooms and a through passage. The lower left end, except for the passage, has been demolished at an unknown stage. Remains of a roof truss at the lower end of the hall and other reused principal rafters appear smoke-blackened, indicating that the hall was probably originally open to the roof and heated by an open-hearth fire. During the early 17th century remodelling, the higher end was extended forwards, a porch was added in front of the passage in the angle to the left, the hall was floored over, an axial stack was inserted at the lower end of the hall backing onto the passage, and a stair turret was built on the back of the hall. The inner room appears to have remained unheated and may have served as a dairy if the lower end had already been demolished. In the late 18th or 19th century an outshut was added to the back of the hall.

A barn was built at right angles in front of the higher end of the house, probably in the 18th century (see separate listing).

The exterior displays two storeys and a two-window range. The right hand section is the projecting hall with a dressed stone front featuring a moulded plinth; the floor is slightly corbelled out on similar mouldings which return to the left. Both mouldings are repeated on the front of the left hand flank wall of the open-fronted porch at the front of the passage doorway, which is set back to the left. The passage doorway has a 19th century plank door and a late 19th century two-light casement above. The ground floor hall window to the right has a chamfered timber lintel to the original wide opening and two late 19th or early 20th century two-light casements with horizontal glazing bars. The late 19th or early 20th century two-light casement above also has horizontal glazing bars and a timber lintel. A barn adjoins to the right of the front at right angles. The lower gable end wall to the left is stone rubble on the ground floor, rebuilt in tendered concrete blocks above. At the back, the main roof is swept down over the outshut, enclosing the stair turret to the left of centre. To the left a late 19th century three-light casement appears on both ground and first floors. To the right of the outshut, the passage rear doorway has a 20th century door and canopy.

The interior hall contains chamfered ceiling beams with straight cut stops and one with bar stops. The axial stack at the lower end of the hall has a blocked fireplace. A partition has been inserted into the hall to create a passage across the back, providing access from the through passage to the inner room. The inner room also contains later partitions and a ceiling beam with step stops. The stair turret at the back of the hall contains wooden winder stairs.

One blade and collar of the original roof truss survives at the lower end of the hall. The principal has mortices for threaded purlins and a tenon at the apex, and the collar appears to have a mortice and tenon joint. It appears smoke-blackened, and the hall stack is inserted underneath. Other reused smoke-blackened principal rafters over the hall have mortices for the purlins. The roof over the passage has been replaced in the 20th century.