Dovecote, Clandeboye Courtyard, Bangor, Co Down, BT19 1RN

A freestanding double-height dovecote of rubble stone, square-on-plan and dating from the late eighteenth century, located centrally within the stableyard at Clandeboye Estate near Bangor, County Down. The building retains much of its original aspect and is characterised by simple materials and detailing.

The dovecote features a hipped natural slate roof surmounted by a timber-sheeted glover (lantern) with small round-headed apertures to each side. Brick eaves sit above a brick dentil course. The upper stage is slightly corbelled over three stepped courses of brick. The walling throughout is random rubble stone, with isolated patches of cement render at upper level. Openings are round-headed with brick arches. Those to the ground floor open on the east and west faces only, forming a through-passage. The first-floor openings on the east and west faces have timber-sheeted doors with fixed tympanum, while blind arches face north and south. Fixed lights are set under the eaves.

The dovecote sits within the stable and coachyards at Clandeboye, which form a quadrilateral courtyard arrangement of single- and two-storey rubble stone outbuildings, including the Chapel and Gasworks. The wider estate is accessed via a long sweeping drive from the main Bangor road to the north.

The building first appears on the first edition Ordnance Survey map of 1833, located at the centre of the stable yard. Historical sources suggest the dovecote dates from the late eighteenth century, likely built after the mid-eighteenth century illustration of the earlier Ballyleidy House, which was replaced by the current Clandeboye House around 1803. No discernible alteration to the dovecote is evident across later editions of the Ordnance Survey maps. The building represents a rare survival of its type, with comparable examples at Castlewellan and Ballywalter. It has group value as part of the suite of buildings associated with Clandeboye Estate.