The Hermitage, 115 Whitehouse Loan, Edinburgh

The Hermitage is a two-storey villa built around 1860, designed in a near L-plan with Baronial details. It features a polygonal tower at the re-entrant angle and is set on sloping ground. The exterior is constructed from squared and snecked stugged sandstone, with polished dressings and droved margins. The building has crowstepped gables and chamfered reveals.

On the south entrance elevation, the doorway is located in the second bay, with two square single windows above it. There is a full-height corniced and canopied canted window in the outer left bay, along with a single window set in the gablehead above. The polygonal stairtower is recessed in the re-entrant angle to the outer right, featuring a single window on each face, a corbelled cornice, and a parapet. The tower has two pedimented dormerheads that break the parapet, topped with a facetted pyramidal roof and an iron weathervane finial.

The east elevation includes a segmental-arched window at the first floor in the gabled bay to the outer right, with a single window in the gablehead. The polygonal stairtower mentioned earlier is set in the re-entrant angle at the center, with a single window at the first floor behind the tower and another window breaking the eaves in a pedimented dormerhead. There is a canted bay to the outer left, corbelled to a square above a timber traceried window, and a single window set in the gablehead.

The west and north elevations have single windows that are irregularly disposed, predominantly featuring plate glass sash and case windows. The roof is covered with grey slate and includes a coped rendered and lined gablehead stack on the north side, along with pedimented dormers on the west and north sides, beaked skewputts, and stone finials on the east gables.

The interior was not seen in 1991. There is a high coped boundary wall that forms a courtyard adjoining the house to the east.