West Kennet Farmhouse Avebury, England

Text courtesy of Historic England. © Crown Copyright, reprinted under the Open Government License.

AVEBURY A4 SU 16 tfd (south side) 5/160 WEST KENNETT West Kennet Farmhouse

GV II

Farmhouse. C17 origins, C18 extension and C19 modification. Large squared and coursed sarson stone, some brick and brick stacks, plain tile roof. An L-plan not now easy to decipher, but may have been a 3-room cross passage original, running north-east, to which a return wing added, running east-west, or possibly this wing was an original service end. There is no early staircase, but it was probably associated with the large stack in the cross-passage wing. In two storeys; the interior arms of the L have; in early wing each floor has 2 and 3-light casements to late C19 brick segmental heads, off centre, left, a 6-panel fielded door to flat hood on brackets. Plain gable return, left, to small brick stack. Interior face of return wing has a 2 and a 3-light casement at each level, and a blocked opening to former door. To the right a lower extension with hipped roof, and panelled door. Outer, or east face of early wing has 1+ 3 windows, mainly 2-light casements, one of these in former door opening to cross passage, now with brick below, and, far left, a one storey canted bay with 4-pane sashes. The hipped return gives to the south elevation which has at ground floor a 2-light casement, a C20 door under tiled lean-to, small single light, and a pair of French doors on 2 steps. First floor has two2-light and one single light casements. Brick and part boarded extension to left. Brick stack to original outer gable, and at ridge on return at right end. Interior: room beyond stone flagged passage has 2 rough chamfered beams, and C19 shutters to one window. Centre room has large bressummer fireplace in C18 or early C19 brickwork, and 2 transverse chamfered beams to lamb's tongue stops. The end room, with canted bay, has C20 fireplace probably concealing earlier one of interest, and one beam with beaded edge. The return wing has good 5-panel fielded door to stair, and central dairy or pantry with splat 'baluster' ventilation over panelling to corridor giving to stone flagged room with secondary lower space in brick flooring, here also is a spine beam with chamfer, carried through only part of width of lower unit. Large end room as kitchen to stone flagged floor, 2 transverse beams. Added room beyond has pump and tanks. First floor rooms have little historical detail in evidence; the dog-leg stair is C19, with a short run of turned baluster balustrade at the top, and with a raised area, similar to a landing but at a higher level, between stair and outer wall. Roofs throughout are very good pegged and numbered collar principals; in the east wing the collars have central section cut out in basket-handle form; two purlins. Here, as throughout, good wide early boarding to floors, and two spine beams with chamfer, set upside-down. At the hipped return is a plastered tympanum, above a diagonal collar with cut-out. Early rafters throughout. 4 bays plus splay to each roof.

Listing NGR: SU1118468294