Town House, Sandhaven, Culross

Town House, Sandhaven, Culross

This is a 2-storey town house with attic, built in 1626 and substantially altered with the addition of an off-centre clock tower in 1783. It was refurbished by Ian G Lindsay and Partners between 1957 and 1959. The building is constructed of ashlar sandstone with rusticated quoins, featuring round-headed and keyblocked openings in the tower. It is five bays wide with a central double forestair, an eaves course to the principal elevation, exposed sandstone ashlar to the front, and harled rendering to the rear.

The south-west principal elevation contains a door at the first bay with a window to its right flank. An inscription reading "Anno Domini 1626" appears above the left door. Another door is positioned at the far right with a window to its left flank. The central double forestair, with renewed stone steps, is surmounted by a blocked oculus and a plaque commemorating John Alistair Erskine Cunninghame of Balgownie, Provost of Culross. A central first-floor door with fanlight is set above a lamp displaying the Culross Arms in glass beneath a crown. The first floor features two windows to each flank with roll-moulded surrounds. Small attic windows sit under the eaves at the second and fourth bays. The clock tower dominates the centre, with a band course at various stages, a round-headed window at the first stage, and the clock itself positioned at the second stage within a circular recess. A round-headed louvred opening at the third stage serves the belfry to each face, though the stonework around these louvres and window is blocked. The tower is finished with a fluted frieze and prominent cornice.

The north-west elevation is attached to Sandhaven, The Tron House, with a plain gable elevation rising above it. A corniced chimney and bellcote (now missing its bell) cap the gable apex. The north-east elevation shows two ground-floor windows to the left, a small central stair window, and three corbels projecting at first-floor level. A rubble wall to the right extends to The Tron House, partially obscuring the Town House. The south-east elevation is plain.

The building features replacement 24-pane timber sash-and-case windows on the first floor and 9-pane timber windows on the ground floor. Two roof lights service the rear. Timber boarded doors provide access. The roof is steeply pitched with graded slate, whilst the north-west gable is crowstepped. A corniced stack sits to the south-east, and the tower is crowned with a slated ogee roof surmounted by a weathervane with a bird finial.

Internally, the ground floor accommodates a shop and exhibition space. A small stone-lined cell to the north is accessed by a studded timber door and features a flagstone floor. A second studded timber door leads from the shop into the exhibition space, which contains arched doorways. The first-floor interior opens from an arched doorway and contains a painted timber ceiling (originally from the west room) with a bell pull set into it. An inscribed stone formerly serving as a pediment, depicting Culross Abbey and inscribed "SIGILLUM BURGI DE CULROSS" (Seal of the Burgh of Culross), is set into the left wall. A newel stair opposite leads to the attic, with a roll-moulded surround to a blocked door to the right. A lamp or candle niche is set into this blocked door, above which a corbelled staircase is visible. A door to the right opens into the debtor's room, which features a painted timber ceiling with geometric design and putti heads. A fireplace occupies the gable wall, with a stone panel to its right carved with the arms of Sir George Bruce and dated 1628. A timber panel painted with the royal arms of Charles I, dated 1637, hangs above the fireplace. A carved plaque in the opposite wall records Sir George Preston of Valleyfield's bequest of 1721. An arched doorway leads into the council chamber in the west room, which is lined with Georgian panelling and features a dentil cornice. A fireplace with a dentil cornice to its timber mantel and a cast-iron firegrate occupies the west gable, with an arch above the windows and a cupboard to the north.