Abbey Gate And Gatehouse

CARLISLE

NY3955NE THE ABBEY 671-1/10/21 Abbey Gate and Gatehouse 01/06/49 (Formerly Listed as: THE ABBEY Slee's Gateway)

GV I

Formerly known as: Abbey Street Lodge The Abbey. Gate tower to St Mary's Priory and attached gatehouse. For Prior Slee, inscribed and dated 1528. Weathered red sandstone ashlar, some dressings of calciferous sandstone, on chamfered plinth, string courses and eaves cornice; clasping buttresses carried up on each angle as stone chimney stacks. Graduated greenslate roofs with coped gables. 2-storey, single-bay gate tower, with attached low 2-storey, 2-bay gatehouse at rear right. At the top of Abbey Street and was the main gate from that street into the Priory, now a gate into the Cathedral grounds. The Abbey Street facade has a large central rounded archway with triple chamfer; the vaulted arch has a further recessed round archway fitted with double gates and a left rounded-arch pedestrian gate. Over the arch is a 3-light Tudor window with hoodmould; gabled above. The rear is similar to the facade but with a Latin inscription on the arch and the window above without hood. The gatehouse projects with a gable and then a half gable and appears to be contemporary with the tower but sash windows have been inserted, some are perhaps in the original surrounds. From the roof crease on the left of the archway it appears that there was a corresponding gatehouse symmetrically placed on that side, which was demolished to make way for the Bishop's Library, nearby, in 1699 (or during the Civil War). For further details see Perriam, CWAAS,Trans.NS LXXXVII. INTERIORS not inspected. Included in this listing is the fragment of wall which extends over Dean Tait's Lane to join with No.48 Abbey Street and now cut by a C19 archway; this could be the remains of an earlier gate tower on this site, or an adjoining Priory building. (Cumb. & West. Antiquarian & Archaeological Soc., New Series: Perriam DR: LXXXVII: The Demolition of the Priory of St Mary: P.142-4).

Listing NGR: NY3981055958