Aynhoe Park

Aynhoe Park is a country house, now converted to flats. Built in the early 17th century, it was damaged by fire in 1645 and subsequently remodelled on several occasions: around 1665 for the Cartwright family by Edward Marshall; from 1707 to 1714, probably by Thomas Archer; and from 1800 to 1805 by Sir John Soane.

The main block is arranged in a U-plan with stables and offices at right angles, linked by archways. The front is rendered brick with limestone ashlar dressings, while the rear and wings are constructed of limestone ashlar.

The north front of the main block, remodelled in 1707-14 and 1800-5, presents three storeys across eleven bays. The five centre bays project forward beneath a pediment. A central doorway features rusticated pilasters and a large triple keystone breaking into the entablature, fitted with a 20th-century door. The windows are 15-pane sashes with straight keystoned heads and moulded frames, except those in the five centre bays on the first floor, which have pediments. A balustraded parapet and pediment were added by Soane.

The former stables on the east side of the courtyard, dating to 1707-14 and probably by Archer, consist of two storeys across eleven bays. The five-bay centre is defined by chamfered quoins and carries a pediment. The central doorway, now converted to a window, has an arched head, diagonally set pilasters, and a concave entablature broken by a large keystone. The ground floor contains 32-pane sash windows, as do the five central bays of the first floor, while the outer bays on the first floor have 12-pane sashes. A blind lunette appears in the pediment.

The former service wing on the west side of the courtyard is similar in design. Both wings are connected to the central block by triumphal arches constructed in 1800-5 by Soane. These arches are one storey with an attic, spanning three bays with Tuscan half columns flanking the arch and arched niches in the outer bays. The attic features incised decoration. The centre arch of the western archway is glazed and was formed as a housekeeper's room.

The south front was the main entrance in the 17th century, as shown in a drawing of 1683 by James Fish, and some details of that date remain. It was remodelled from 1707-14. This elevation displays three storeys across eleven bays, with the five central bays defined by chamfered quoins and a bracketed pediment. The central doorway, now a window, has Tuscan half columns and an entablature with a double keystone. An arched central window on the first floor is flanked by Corinthian columns, above which is a blank stone plaque and pediment framed by heads and swags of fruit. Other windows are 15-pane sashes with straight keystoned heads, except in the five centre bays on the ground and first floors, which have pediments.

Flanking wings containing a library to the left and an orangery to the right were added in 1707-14 and heightened in 1800-5. Each wing is two storeys across seven bays, with arched sash windows on the ground floor divided by coupled pilasters whose capitals have inward-turning volutes. The first-floor window frames bear incised Grecian decoration by Soane. A two-bay pediment on the west side of the library was added by Soane.

The interior combines work by Archer and Soane. The entrance hall features an early 18th-century screen of two pairs of fluted Doric columns on each side, and a 20th-century alabaster fireplace. The east staircase, also early 18th-century, has an open well with three balusters to each tread, twisted and fluted. The newel posts are fluted Corinthian columns, and the tread ends are carved with scrolls. Walls display four pairs of unfluted Ionic columns added by Soane as part of his planned but unexecuted more thorough remodelling of the staircase.

The west staircase, early 19th-century work by Soane, features an open well, a glazed dome, and an iron balustrade. The Garden Hall in the centre of the south front was remodelled by Soane with shallow apsidal ends and a groin vault. An early 19th-century fireplace of grey and white marble displays oval figure reliefs linked by swags.

The French Drawing Room to the east contains a mid-19th-century rococo revival fireplace in red marble with ormolu decoration. The dining room to the west has two unfluted Ionic columns screening a serving alcove with apsidal ends, each fitted with an early 19th-century mahogany buffet. The library features an early 19th-century cornice of small Gothic fans and a marble fireplace in Soane's style with fluted sides and frieze.

The "Cold Bathroom" at the east end of the main block on the ground floor, designed by Soane and remodelled in 1952, follows a Greek cross plan with a groin vault on swelling Tuscan columns. The upper floors were not inspected during the survey.

The park is reputedly landscaped by Capability Brown.