Gatehouse And Curtain Wall Of Scales Hall

The gatehouse and a short stretch of curtain wall of Scales Hall date from the late 16th century. The gatehouse features pink sandstone rubble walls topped with a graduated greenslate roof, which has coped gables and shaped finials. The curtain wall is made of similar rubble and includes a battlemented parapet. The two-storey gatehouse has a left wall and a gateway with a segmental archway that has roll moulding. Above the archway is a three-light stone-mullioned window with a hoodmould, although the inscription above it is too weathered to read. The arch jambs have slots for bars, but the gates have been removed. The high wall slopes down to a 20th-century gateway and has survived due to steps that provide access to the parapet walk, which also leads to a studded plank door in a chamfered surround located in the left return wall of the gatehouse. The rear of the gatehouse has been rebuilt in brick over a wooden lintel. This structure is part of the fortified additions to Scales Hall, likely built in 1591 for the Southaik family, and can be compared to similar 16th-century curtain walls and gateways at Croglin Low Hall and Askerton Castle. Such features are common in Westmorland but are rare in Cumberland.