Leuchie

Leuchie is a large, three-storey classical mansion built between 1779 and 1785. The house incorporates the foundations of an earlier building and was significantly enlarged around 1860, resulting in an asymmetrical layout. It is constructed of red rubble sandstone, originally harled, with grey ashlar dressings to the original house, while more recent Victorian additions are of squared and snecked stone. A raised base with a band course and rusticated quoins is visible, topped by a moulded cornice and a die balustrade.

The north (entrance) elevation, dated circa 1859, has five bays. The central and flanking bays to the left feature tall ground floor windows, with window sizes decreasing on the first and second floors. A two-bay Doric columned, pedimented ashlar porch projects to the right, incorporating single windows on each floor above.

The south elevation, dating from 1779, also has five bays. The central three bays form a broad canted projection with French windows at ground floor level and tall first-floor windows featuring wrought-iron balconies. The windows diminish in size upwards, mirroring the flanking bays. An armorial tablet is positioned within the balustrade above the central bay.

The west elevation includes a full-height bowed bay, originally centrally placed, with three windows on each floor. To the north are two additional wide bays. The lower two bays, added circa 1859, feature tall ground floor windows that decrease in size on the first and second floors.

The east (service) elevation shows a full-height bowed bay from the original 1779 house to the left, with a basement cellar door. A blank bay is at the centre of the ground floor, while blind windows are present at first and second floor level. Later, piend-roofed projections extend from the house, including a seven-bay wing. Single-storey outhouse projections extend from the service court on both sides.

The windows are predominantly sash and case with a 12-pane glazing pattern, with Victorian plate glass sashes on the ground floor. Broad ashlar-dressed stacks, with decorative cans and moulded coping, rise from the roof; the original house has two pairs linked together. The roofs are slate, with lead flashings.

The interior of Leuchie is exceptionally well decorated. The original house contains a stone-flagged hall with a cantilevered stone staircase, a classical plaster medallion, and exuberant classical plasterwork in a coombed ceiling. The interior exhibits a strong Adamesque style, with pedimented doors leading off the hall to oval rooms within the canted bays. There are marble chimney pieces, including one with a tablet depicting Bacchus and Ariadne by Flaxman. The plasterwork is by James Nisbet, and the ceilings are in a late Adam style. A new hall and a dining room were added in the circa 1859 work.

To the south, a partly terraced garden has stone steps. The grounds were formerly extensively planted.