Cirencester Park Wall, Gates, Lodges And Museum Of Roman Antiquities

Cirencester Park Wall, Gates, Lodges and Museum of Roman Antiquities

This group of structures comprises the park wall enclosing Cirencester Park, together with associated gateways, lodges and the Museum of Roman Antiquities, dating from the early to mid-18th century with later additions from 1856 onwards. The complex includes a lodge to the estate yard, a gateway to Cirencester Park Mansion, the Museum of Roman Antiquities, and two Kennels' Lodges, all located on Tetbury Road and Park Lane.

The park wall is approximately 3 metres high along Park Lane and Tetbury Road, constructed of coursed squared limestone with quoins at angles and ashlar coping. At the Museum, the wall rises to approximately 4 metres and becomes gradually lower, changing to coursed squared limestone rubble and eventually to coursed limestone rubble with cement capping at the Kennels' Lodges. The wall features one wrought-iron footgate with spear tops in plain reveal and one similar blocked gateway on Tetbury Road.

The lodge to the estate yard dates from the early 20th century and is built of coursed squared limestone with ashlar dressings and a Welsh slate roof. It is a single-storey structure of three windows, with two 2-light timber casements in moulded stone surrounds with bracketed stone cills on the right, and a canted oriel to the left with moulded stone mullions and transoms and leaded upper lights supported on a single console bracket. The building has a moulded cornice with pediment over the centre light, deep chamfered plinth, rusticated quoins at the left and right angles, and an entrance to the rear.

The gateway to Cirencester Park Mansion dates from the early to mid-18th century and is constructed of limestone ashlar and rock-faced limestone. It features a pair of 24-panel doors with a 6-panel wicket gate, and a cast-iron lion-head knocker with timber panel infilling a round-headed opening with rusticated surround. The gateway has a shallow plinth, impost bands extending from the opening to quoin strips at the left and right angles, an ashlar frieze, modillion cornice and blocking course topped by three ball finials.

The Museum of Roman Antiquities, now of unknown use, is attached to a house and is constructed of coursed squared limestone with ashlar dressings. The Museum has a double-pile Welsh slate roof, while the house has a clay tile hipped roof with a stone stack to the right side. The Museum comprises a single high storey with two 4-light horseshoe-shaped windows with chamfered mullions and moulded cills in moulded stone surrounds with recessed panels below. A band course at approximately 3 metres height is surmounted by ashlar set back above to flat panels with moulded band beside and over the windows. Pilasters rise from the band course to the centre and at the left and right angles, and the Museum has two coped gables. To the right of the Museum, a flat chamfered surround frames a pair of iron gates with moulded cornice and parapet over, giving access to a roofed space. A 6-panel door to the Museum is located in a moulded stone architrave to the left, with 6-panel doors to the rear and right giving access to the house.

The adjoining house is two storeys in a single-window range. The first floor contains one 2-light timber casement in a flat unmoulded surround, and the ground floor has a similar 3-light window with chamfered stone mullions. A band course runs over the ground floor, and the building has flush quoins at the left and right angles.

The Kennels' Lodges, dating from the mid-19th century, are constructed of coursed squared limestone with clay tile roofs with coped verges. The lodge to the right has a reconstituted stone ridge stack, while the lodge to the left has ashlar stacks with moulded tops to the ridge and gable end to the rear.

The lodge to the right has an entrance front to the left side and is a single-storey two-window range with two 19th-century 2-light timber casements in plain reveals with stone cills and one plank door with applied mouldings forming three vertical panels to the right. The elevation to Tetbury Road has one 3-light chamfered stone mullion window. Ball finials are positioned at the apex of the gables to the left and right ends.

The lodge to the left is L-plan with one gable to the entrance front. It is two storeys with a cellar and a two-window range. The first floor has two 2-light chamfered stone mullion windows with iron casements, and the ground floor has one similar 2-light and one similar 3-light window. A door with Tudor-arched head and panels formed by applied mouldings in a chamfered surround is positioned to the left, with a similar plank door in the wall to the right. The building has an ashlar plinth and ball finials at the coped gables to the front and left side, with a grille to the cellar in the ground to the right front. The road front to the left shows a 2-light window to the first floor and a 3-light window to the ground floor, with a moulded string over the ground floor.

Between the lodges is an entrance formed by two 19th-century foot gates and a pair of large gates with spear tops. Two ashlar piers approximately 2.5 metres high with plinth and pyramidal capping form this entrance, with a similar pier in the wall to the right of the lodge to the right.

The interiors have not been inspected.