Otley Hall, Otley, Suffolk

Description

OTLEY HALL LANE (West side)
TM 25 NW
4/108
16/3/66 Otley Hall
- I

Manor House. C15 and C16 with C17, C19 and C20 additions and alterations.
Built by Robert Gosnold and subsequent members of the Gosnold family.
Timber framed with some colourwashed render. English bond brick walling
and massive brick chimney stacks with a plaintiled roof. Two storeys with
attic. Uneven cross-shaped plan built at different stages and having
evolved from what was probably an H-shaped or courtyard plan, the service
ranges of which have now been demolished. North face: The early-mid C16
range at right contains the hall and screens passage and parlour, the
projecting later C16 gabled wing at left had a banqueting room at first
floor level and a ground floor room open to the west, know as the
'plahouse' and formerly used for skittles or cockfighting, both rooms now
subdivided and altered. The hall range is close-studded with brick nogged
infill and has a blocked doorway at far right, leading to the screens
passage, with 4-centered head and decorated spandrels. The service range
formerly at right of this has been demolished. Above the doorway and to
left of it runs a near-continuous ribbon window set in the upper walling of
the ground floor with lower ranges of 3 and 4 lights. The hall oriel is of
8 lights with 4 moulded mullions and transoms and a brick base. The
parlour window is of T-shape with 8 central lights and 3 at either side.
The first floor is jettied and has a decorated bressumer. The close
studded walling at right has decorative bracing supported on crown corbels
and at left is a jettied gable with decorative bressumer and below this an
oriel window, either inserted or replaced in the C19, of 6 lights with a
decorative, deep coved sill. To right of this is a similar 3-light canted
oriel window of which some of the decorated woodwork has been renewed in
the C19. At right again is a C19 oriel of 5 lights and at far right was a
further 3-light canted oriel of which the sill remains. The projecting
wing at left has 4 bays, now infilled and having early C20 windows and a
doorway. The first floor is jettied and has decorative pargetting
including a band of vine trail ornament. To the left is a canted oriel of
5 lights and at right of centre is a similar window with a coved
underbelly. Between these is set a 4-light window with ovolo surround, at
right is a similar window and at far right is a 2-light window with
diamond-section mullions. To the attic is a 3-light gabled dormer. The
gable end of the wing has a 5-light ground floor window with ovolo-moulded
surround, either inserted or replaced in the C20. To the first floor is a
similar 5-light window and above this a 2-light attic window. The valley
between the two wings has a massive brick stack with rectangular base and 2
octagonal flues with moulded, stepped caps. East front: Projecting
shallow-gabled wing at near-centre with close-studded walling to the first
floor and to the ground floor a set of four C20 French windows. Canted
oriel at first floor level with 5 central lights and 4 lights at either
side forming a T-shaped window. Canted gable above with a 3-light attic
window. The left-hand return has a massive English bond stack with two C19
brick flues. To the right of this wing the rear of the later C16 wing has
a massive chimney breast at right of centre of English bond brick with 2
octagonal flues to the top above a series of offsets. To right of this is
a 3-light ground floor window with moulded surround. At left of the stack
are 5-light and 3-light mezzanine staircase windows and to right of these a
5-light first floor window and 2-light and single-light first floor
windows. Immediately to left of the stack is a gabled dormer window of 3
lights. The low wing at left of the projecting near-central wing has near-
random fenestration all of C20 date with 6 ground floor 2-light windows and
a 3-light and 2-light window at first floor level and at far right 3 small
single casements and an attic 3-light dormer. The gable end of this wing
has a further massive stack with 2 rebuilt C19 stacks. South face
(entrance front): Hall wing at left with the low wing at right. The hall
range has a projecting gabled wing at right with a bowed front, originally
the stair tower but converted in the early C20 to an entrance. This is
close studded with nogged brick infill. Doorway at ground floor level and
a single-light casement to the first floor. Immediately to left of this is
a massive chimney stack of English bond brick with blue brick diapering
bearing 2 octagonal flues, mostly rebuilt in the C19. To right is an
outshut with a pantile roof and at first floor level above it is a 4-light
casement and in the gable above this a 3-light window. Projecting at right
is the low southern wing which has four 2-light ground floor windows and
three similar first floor windows. Projecting at far right of this is a
further wing with a cambered-headed doorway at right with 2-light windows
at either side, a 4-light first floor window and a 3-light attic window.
Interior: The kitchen in the low wing has pament tiled flooring, jowled
floor posts indicating a continuous first floor part of which has now been
removed to leave a 2-storey dining area. The hall has an C18 brick floor.
C17 panelling covers the walls with some C20 additions or restorations.
The ceiling of the hall is divided into 4 cells with richly-moulded beams
of c.1500 with roll and cavetto mouldings and fleurons to their sides.
Richly-moulded joists with run-out end stops. Supporting the central beams
are arch braces which have floral bosses to their spandrels. Chimney
bressumer with roll mouldings and fleurons with some renewed moulding. The
screens passage has a series of moulded muntins and two remaining doorways
with 4-centered heads having decorated spandrels. Above the brattished
cross rail which forms the lintel of the doorways is a further series of
uprights. No sign of doors to the service rooms remains, the side wall of
the passage now having a window. The parlour (now dining room) has
similarly-moulded ceiling beams some of which have been shaved. Similarly-
moulded wall frieze. Panelling to the walls below this of late C16 date
with very finely-moulded stylised linenfold, similar to that at Lavenham
Guildhall. One contemporary door and three C19 or early C20 copies.
Chamfered bressumer. Jacobean staircase of 4 flights with turned newels
and balusters and a moulded handrail. The banqueting room above the
cockpit has now been subdivided into bedrooms, dressing rooms and bathrooms
but has fresco work to the walls showing strapwork cartouches and caryatids
and hermes coats of arms and above the fireplace which has a 4-centered
arch of moulded bricks, the Naunton and Gosnold arms. Moulded ceiling with
square and L-shaped panels. One further first floor room has C17
panelling, another above the hall has richly-moulded wall posts and ceiling
beams similar to those in the hall. The house shares several features with
the contemporary High House, Otley (qv), apparently also built for the
Gosnold family.

Sources: Nikolaus Pevsner, Buildings of England: Suffolk 1975
Eric Sandon, Suffolk Houses, 1977

Listing NGR: TM2070456245

External Links

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British Listed Buildings

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Otley Hall

A Grade I Listed Building in Otley, Suffolk

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Description

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