Elrig House

Elrig House

A 2-storey country house with attic, designed by Stewart and Paterson in 1912 and conceived as a Scots 17th century vernacular Arts and Crafts composition. The building follows a truncated H-plan with a symmetrical elevation to the south and a near-symmetrical elevation to the north.

The walls are constructed of decoratively packed and pinned random rubble with Cyclopean stone at intervals, dressed with granite lintels and cills. The eaves are formed with a rubble course, and the angles are rounded. The wall plane is slightly advanced above the ground floor on gabled jambs and a tower. The roofs are steeply pitched with small purple slates.

North Elevation

This entrance front comprises seven bays at the centre, with a gabled jamb advanced to the right and a 2-storey piend-roofed wing advanced to the left, within whose re-entrant angle sits a semi-circular tower. The central bays feature a gabled porch at the centre, with red sandstone ashlar coped skews, roll skewputts, a block finial, and a projecting blockish tablet over a broad two-leaf door. Small windows occupy the returns of the porch. A door set on a chamfered re-entrant angle appears to the outer right, with a window in the first bay and flanking windows in the seventh bay at ground floor level. Two windows flank the porch in both the third and fifth bays. A full-length stair window occupies the second bay, with a stair window at first floor in the third bay. Triangular dormerheads crown alternate windows in the first, third, fifth and seventh bays at first floor level, while small square windows appear in the fourth and sixth bays. Three regularly spaced dormer windows light the upper floor. The gabled jamb contains a window at the centre of its ground floor and an elongated-cill window in the gablehead, with a blank inner return. The semi-circular tower has windows to both floors on the north-west, two small windows at the eaves to north and west, and a conical roof. The eastern wing displays two ground-floor windows and a cat-slide dormer window at first floor to its west return. The north elevation of the wing is gabled to the left, with a window left of centre at first floor and flight-holes in the gablehead, and two windows to both floors to the right, with a wallhead stack positioned between them.

South Elevation

The symmetrical garden front presents five bays at the centre, flanked by advanced gabled jambs to left and right. The central bays feature narrow doors to the outer right and outer left (set on a chamfered re-entrant angle), with large windows at ground floor. The centre window is distinguished by an ashlar blockish keystoned lintel and a small panel below the cill, inscribed "Nisi Dominus Frustra NCMXII AM MM". Alternate triangular and keel-shaped dormerheads crown the first-floor windows, spaced 1-3-1, with the central three windows set in a slightly recessed panel and the outer two in slightly advanced panels. Five regularly spaced dormer windows are distributed across the elevation. The gabled jambs each contain two ground-floor windows, a first-floor centre window, and a gablehead window with elongated cill, along with a first-floor window to the inner returns. A gabled and crowstepped loggia, adjoined at the outer right angle, features a round-arched opening to the west and three open bays to the south, divided by circular piers with low walls to the outer bays. A harled lean-to with a corrugated sheeting roof is adjoined to the east.

West and East Elevations

The west elevation displays a tripartite window with relieving arch, positioned left of centre at ground floor, with further windows to left and right. At first floor, three windows occupy the left and left-of-centre positions, with one window to the right. Three dormer windows, spaced 2-1, light the upper storey. A section of wall adjoined to the right is crowstepped over a round-arched gateway.

The east elevation contains a small window right of centre and two windows to the right and one to the left at first floor, with two dormer windows. A single-storey range adjoins to the left, and a 2-storey range adjoins to the right with its first floor breaking the eaves, together forming an inner court with a former vehicle house to the left. A large round-arched opening provides access into the court. The former motor house displays two now partly blocked and glazed segmental arches to the north, and a rubble forestair to first floor to the east.

Glazing and Details

Timber doors feature wrought-iron door furniture, some studded and some set with bull's-eye panes. Windows show considerable variety in glazing: 8-pane 2-light timber casement windows with 8-pane lights over appear in the central bays at ground floor to the south; mainly 12-pane timber sash-and-case windows throughout; and 9-pane fixed glazing to dormer windows. Slate-hung cat-slide dormer windows are a consistent feature. Crowstepped gables are constructed of small stones and covered with thin stone slabs. Slate-coped rubble stacks are positioned at the ridge to outer left and right, with a tall stack to the right of centre on the south pitch, a gablehead stack to the right, and a stepped wallhead stack to the wing on the north. The eaves course is formed as rubble.

Interior

The interior contains much original woodwork, wrought-iron door furniture and window fittings, and a groin-vaulted hall.

Terrace Garden

A rectangular-plan formal terrace garden adjoins the south elevation. Rubble walls with flat rubble coping define the space, with a flight of steps at the centre to the south. Rounded angles at the south-east and south-west corners contain stone-flagged seats. Random-rubble flagged paths radiate from a pond with rubble parapet at the centre. A raised terrace with rubble wall and steps to either side is positioned between the advanced gables of the house. An iron sculpture of an eagle, set on a red sandstone pedestal, stands to the right of the house on the north side.

Boundary Features

Drystone rubble boundary walls are reinforced by square rubble conical-capped drum piers surmounted by rounded boulder finials. A timber gate provides access.