Description

17th century. 2-storey and attic, 5-bay, rectangular-plan house. Sandstone rubble walls; harled exterior. Exposed stone surrounds. Exposed stone eaves course.

NW (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: advanced bay to far left; entrance door to ground floor; roll-moulded surround. 1st floor window above to left. National Trust for Scotland (NTS) plaque to left. Left quoin partly chamfered. Bay set back to right; ground floor window to right; 1st floor window above to left. Right quoin chamfered with quoin stop at eaves. 3-bay section set back to right. Door to left; chamfered surround; 2 windows to right. 3 1st floor windows centred above (smaller central window, without stone surround). Right quoin chamfered to approximately ground floor ceiling height.

NE ELEVATION: ground floor window to left; 1st floor window centred above and to right. Stone eaves course painted white.

SE ELEVATION: not visible, obscured by parallel Little Causeway, Ark B.

SW ELEVATION: partially seen. 1st floor window to left and right. 2 central attic windows.

Replacement 12-pane timber sash and case windows. Studded timber boarded doors; tirling pin to both. Pitched roof to SW; piended to NE; clay pantiles. Gable apex stack to SW; polygonal clay cans.

INTERIOR: modernised interior. Exposed 1? stone arch at 1st floor on SE wall.

ADJACENT WALL

L-plan harled wall set back slightly from SW gable encloses yard to SW. Curved quoin; exposed flat coping stones; window/chute to left; door to right in NW elevation.

Statement of Interest

Situated in a prominent position at The Cross and at the top of Little and Mid Causeways. The building is believed to have been a sailor's hostel, which may explain its name. The internal stone arches are an interesting feature and they appear to stop abruptly at the NE gable as if truncated. The piers may have extended to the ground, however, the modern stairs now obstruct this. They may have been relieving arches for windows (as at The Study) which were redundant once the adjacent Ark B was built. The stepped plan of the NW elevation and eaves course suggest later development of the house, possibly building out over a forestair. Late 1930's photographs from the NMRS shows the building redundant and boarded up with a door instead of a window at the 2nd bay (principal elevation) and without the 4th bay windows at ground and 1st floor. 1950's drawings (stored at the NMRS) by Ian G Lindsay and Partners for the NTS show the plans for converting The Ark, Ark B and the Nunnery into one house. There are further plans dated 1960, for the rehabilitation of the 3 buildings as 3 separate dwellings. Restoration took place in 1964. For brief history of Culross Burgh see Culross, The Cross, The Study.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17804739

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.

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