Birseside (Former Birse Manse)

Birseside, formerly known as Birse Manse, is a rectangular-plan manse built in the earlier 18th century, with an east wing added in the 1790s and a two-storey, two-bay wing and porch added to the south in 1834. The building is harled with granite dressings, featuring a base course, projecting cills, and strip quoins on the 1834 additions.

The south elevation is asymmetrical, showcasing a three-bay earlier 18th century block with a window on the first floor of the left bay and a timber bipartite dormer in the attic above. The central and right bays are obscured by the advanced two-storey, two-bay 1834 additions, which have regular fenestration topped with a block pediment. There are two blind windows on the left return at the ground and first floors, with a window at the first floor flanking the left side and a porch featuring a panelled timber door and a window on the left return. To the outer right, there is a gabled two-storey wing from the 1790s, which adjoins the earlier block and has an off-centre window on the ground and first floors.

The east elevation shows the earlier 18th century block obscured by the 1790 addition, with irregular fenestration on both the ground and first floors. A walled garden is situated to the left and right of this elevation.

The north elevation is also asymmetrical, featuring the earlier 18th century three-bay section with the 1790 bay adjoining to the left. There is a lean-to porch at the centre of the ground floor, with a door to the right and a window to the left, as well as a window on the right return and an outer right flanking window. A decorative stair window is located near the centre of the first floor, flanked by a small window on the left and two windows on the right.

The west elevation is gabled and blank. The roof is covered with graded grey slate and features stone ridges, stone skews with simple skewputts, harled coped gableheads, and ridge stacks with octagonal cans. The building has cast-iron rainwater goods.

The interior was not seen in 1999.

Adjoining the house to the east is a near-rectangular-plan walled garden, with rubble walls and rubble coping. There are boarded timber gates to the west and south, and the walls rise behind a replacement lean-to glasshouse located at the centre of the north wall. A Pictish stone is built into the garden wall.