Dovecote at Home Farm

Cadw's description

Location

Home Farm is approximately 200m NE of the parish church. The dovecote stands to the S of the farm yard in a former orchard.

History

Home Farm was built in the early C19 by Sir John Nicholl, who purchased the Merthyr Mawr Estate in 1804. The dovecote was built on the site of a former orchard in the latter half of the C19.

Exterior

Two storeys and square in plan, of coursed, dressed limestone and pyramidal slate roof (a former cupola is now missing). The N side facing the farm yard is open-fronted to the lower storey with 2 wide doorways under stone segmental heads (with added brick jambs and steel lintel to doorway on R). Above is a central doorway with flat stone arch. The E and W walls have, set back slightly from the angles, raked stone buttresses (the E wall also partly fallen down). In the S wall are 2 doorways similar to N side but infilled with rubble stone, and a stub wall between them which formerly projected to the S. Above is a central oculus.

Interior

The lower storey was originally 2 units but only stub walls of a former partition survive. The walls are plastered in the lower storey, and in the loft up to the level of the brick nesting boxes. The roof has machine-sawn, pegged trusses, partly fire damaged.

Reason for designation

Included for group value with Home Farm and its listed farm buildings, and for group value with other listed items on the Merthyr Mawr Estate.