Summary

Dovecote, dated to the early C17.

Description

Dovecote, dated to the early C17.

MATERIALS: timber-framed construction with red brick infill and a plain tiled roof.

PLAN: the building is square in plan.

EXTERIOR: tall structure on a high brick plinth. The framing comprises three, roughly-square panels between the sill and the wall-plate and tie-beam trusses exposed in the north-west and south-east gable ends; one with four struts above the tie beam and the other has a V-strut. There is a small plank timber door with strap hinges set within a reduced opening in the plinth on the north-west side. Set high in the gable above is a small, rectangular two-light opening with a V-strut above the lintel. The roof is surmounted by a wooden, gabled flight lantern which has alighting ledges and entry holes to each side.

INTERIOR: although at the time of updating this List Entry it was not possible to inspect the interior (2017), the walls are lined with approximately 250 L-shaped, timber nesting boxes without alighting ledges.

History

Dovecotes are specialised structures designed for the breeding and keeping of doves as a source of food and as a symbol of high social status. Most surviving examples were built in the period between the C14 and the C17, although earlier and later examples are documented.

The dovecote at Pumphouse Farm is situated in an elevated position, on rising ground some 80m to the south-east of the farmhouse (Grade II). It dates from the early C17 and appears to have been constructed around the same time as the earliest part of the house. Pumphouse Farm is understood to have once been part of the estate of the Vernon family who lived at Hanbury Hall to the north-west (see SOURCES). The dovecote is depicted on historic Ordnance Survey maps, and is marked as ‘Pigeon House’ on the map published in 1885.

Reasons for Listing

The dovecote at Pumphouse Farm, which dates from the early C17, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

Architectural interest:
* As a well-preserved example which retains key elements, such as the nesting boxes and alighting ledges, that reflect the building’s original function;
* For the decorative role it also fulfilled as an eyecatcher in the landscape.

Group value:
* Although located apart from Pumphouse Farm, it has strong group value, forming part of an historic ensemble with the Grade II listed farmhouse and agricultural buildings.

External Links

• Historic England Listing

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

• 
  Wiltshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  The Listed Buildings and Other Principal Structures at the Royal Gunpowder Mills Waltham Abbey
• 
  Gloucestershire 2: The Vale and The Forest of Dean: Vale and Forest of Dean Pt. 2 (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Old House Care and Repair
• 
  Suffolk: East (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  [(Cumberland and Westmorland)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1967)