Description

TL 96 SW ROUGHAM BLACKTHORPE

5/37 Layers Breck Farmhouse
-
21.2.72
II*

Former farmhouse. C15: a Wealden house, with a contemporary rear wing. The
storied upper end of the main range is now missing. Part 2 storeys, with
later cellar below, part 2 storeys and attics. 3 bays to front range, 2 bays
to rear. Timber-framed, with the timbers exposed on most of the front; the
remainder rendered. Roofs with pantiles, some black-glazed. An end chimney-
stack to each range, that to the main range with 4 hexagonal shafts with
attached heads on a plain rectangular base. 2 fireplaces on the external wall
indicate the position of the missing storied end: both hearths have rounded
backs and arched surrounds, on the upper storey plastered and ovolo-moulded.
C20 casement windows in a variety of styles; part of one diamond-mullioned
upper window exposed on the right side of the front. The wide doorway has
shallow arched spandrels; empty mortices above and to each side of the
surround indicate a former original porch (cf. similar evidence at The Little
Hall, Market Place, Lavenham). This doorway, with a corresponding doorway on
the back wall, made a cross-passage entry to the former 2-bay open hall,
divided from the hall by a screen with a wide central opening; this is still
in situ, but infilled by later panelling. Crown-post roof, with a very fine
open truss: chamfered posts, and a cambered tie-beam with hollow-chamfer
moulding; heavy arched braces terminating in carved capitals, both different;
a tall octagonal crown-post, moulded at cap and base and braced 4 ways at the
head: one brace missing. The front wall of the upper hall bay was pushed
forward to the line of the outer wallplate in the late C16; the inserted hall
beam of the same date has a plain chamfer and curved stops, and the hearth a
plain timber lintel. On the other side of the cross-passage, the doors for
the 2 service rooms, with arched heads, and the doorway to the stair, are all
in situ. The rear wing has an original arched doorway and window, and seems
to have had a separate cross-entry against the rear wall of the main range.
Access to the main house was only on the upper storey. The wing has an
exposed ceiling with heavy cross-beams, and a large open fireplace replacing a
former smoke-bay. The timbering throughout the house is of very good quality.

Listing NGR: TL9011563184

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q17540440

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

• 
  Hertfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990
• 
  Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of Historic Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
• 
  Old House Handbook 2 Books Bundle Collection (Old House Handbook: A Practical Guide to Care and Repair,Old House Eco Handbook: A Practical Guide to Retrofitting for Energy-Efficiency & Sustainability)
• 
  Listed Buildings: The Law and Practice of History Buildings, Ancient Monuments and Conservation Areas
• 
  Berkshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)