Retaining wall and steps for the main terrace to the west of the Talbot Hotel

High terrace retaining wall and staircase, early and mid C18.

MATERIALS Staircase and surrounding walls of Hildenley limestone ashlar. Terrace wall of large C18 bricks set on a footing of coursed limestone rubble.

DESCRIPTION The terrace wall is approximately 60m long, 6m high on the lower (south) side and 0.5m high on the upper side. It has cambered coping stones and full height pilaster buttresses that form piers, at one time topped by urns. Towards the eastern end of the terrace there are three large, battered buttresses which are later supports.

The staircase is at the west end of the wall and makes a quarter turn down to the south. It has raked parapet walls with chamfered coping in the form of giant handrails, terminating at cylindrical piers with shallow domed caps. Beneath the stairs there is a small storage chamber and the staircase as a whole is flanked by raked screen walls with square section piers. The eastern screen wall is keyed into the brickwork of the terrace wall but clearly abuts the stonework of the staircase. At the head of the staircase there is a short flight of much simpler steps giving access to a beech tree lined terrace walk leading to a blocked doorway in the western garden wall (see NHLE 1290826).