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Summary

Description

James Gillespie, circa 1900. 2-storey, 3-bay Jacobean house with single storey entrance bay. Squared and snecked rubble with ashlar dressings, polished ashlar and harl to single storey bay. Base and eaves courses. Corbelled and crenellated oriel; hoodmoulds and label-stops, stone mullions and moulded arrises.

S (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: slightly advanced finialled gabled bay to centre with 2 hoodmoulded windows at ground and canted tripartite oriel above; flanking bays each with canted 4-light window and stepped blocking course with carved detail at ground; 1st floor with square-headed tripartite window breaking eaves in bay to right and small window between bays, further tripartite window to left with narrow light in gablet breaking eaves above. Advanced single storey bay to outer left with paired pilasters and composite capitals flanking pointed-arch opening with hoodmould and label-stops of carved male and female heads, modern boarded timber door and 2-part fanlight; paired pilasters as above on both returns, the whole supporting cavetto cornice and stepped and carved blocking course with coat-of-arms at centre; further window on return to right.

E ELEVATION: finialled gabled bay to left with window to each floor and further smaller window to right at 1st floor; advanced M-gable to centre and right with 2 windows to each floor. Single storey wing to outer right.

W ELEVATION: variety of elements including gabled bay to outer right, large tripartite window to outer left, 2 gablet-headed dormer windows and flat-roofed entrance hall projecting to right with screen wall to left (both harled).

N ELEVATION: 3 receding gabled bays (that to right with corbelled stack) with irregular fenestration, and stone bridge (from higher ground to N) to1st floor door in centre gable.

Mostly small-pane and plate glass glazing in timber sash and case windows. Grey slates. Moulded copes to ashlar stacks (some shouldered), and ashlar-coped skews with moulded skewputts.

INTERIOR: exceptionally fine plasterwork to ceilings of principal rooms and hall; some panelled timber doors with moulded architraves and round-headed arches with panelled soffits. Stair top-lit with decorative-astragalled, coloured glass dome.

BOUNDARY WALLS, TERRACES AND STEPS: semicircular-coped rubble boundary walls; square gatepiers with stop-chamfered arrises and stepped coping; N terrace with saddleback-coped, squared rubble walls with circular piers, and flat-coped walls flanking flight of stone steps with seat.

Statement of Special Interest

The Priory was built on the site of St Mary's House (demolished 1890) purchased by Michael Nairn, floorcloth and linoleum manufacturer, in 1826 from David Landale. The current house (of surprisingly retrogressive style for 1900 but not apparently echoing the earlier St Mary's) was possibly built as a wedding gift for Michael Nairn's daughter, but was only inhabited by a family member for a short time after which it became extra office space and included flatted accommodation for staff and visitors. Planning permission for the Gate Lodge, built in 1901 by James Gillespie, was sought by Miss Euphemia Nairn. The Priory is now part of Fife College.

References

Bibliography

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