Grotto and Garden Wall Approximately 20 Metres South of Frontage of Holdenhurst is a Grade II listed building in the Somerset local planning authority area, England. First listed on 31 May 1985. Grotto, garden wall.

Grotto and Garden Wall Approximately 20 Metres South of Frontage of Holdenhurst

WRENN ID
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Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Somerset
Constituency
Wells and Mendip Hills MP: Tessa Munt (LD)
Country
England
Date first listed
31 May 1985
Type
Grotto, garden wall
Address
Grotto and Garden Wall Approximately 20 Metres South of Frontage of Holdenhurst, BS28 4EQ
OS grid reference
ST 436 480
Coordinates
51.22866, -2.80862
Source
Historic England listing

Also on this page: flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The grotto and garden wall, located approximately 20 meters south of the frontage of Holdenhurst, date from the early 19th century and are built from rubble, dressed stone, and tufa in an eccentric Gothick style. The grotto is enclosed in a small rectangular structure featuring a parapet and a pantile roof. It has a pointed arch door opening to the west, framed by an ogee-headed plaster surround decorated with a rosette and shell motifs. To the left of the door, there is a tablet inscribed with a lyrical poem.

Inside, the grotto has a ribbed plaster ceiling that incorporates seashells and corbels carved as heads. A small quatrefoil window to the east contains stained glass. Extending approximately 20 meters to the west from the southwest corner is a section of rubble wall that stands 3 meters high, topped with plain dressed coping and some tufa finials. This wall features a traceried design that includes seashells and is adjacent to an inscribed tablet with a pediment. There is also an ogee-headed lancet window with stained glass, which was noted to be partially decayed during the re-survey in May 1984.

Local climate

Grotto and Garden Wall Approximately 20 Metres South of Frontage of Holdenhurst receives an average of 830 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 54% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 68% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 28 freeze-thaw cycles a year, fewer than 69% of listed buildings. Of these, 10 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

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