Description

This list entry was subject to a Minor Amendment on 01/10/2012

TL 9836 24/833
5377

THE DOWNS
Stoke-by-Nayland
The Downs Farmhouse

GV
II*

Former farmhouse. Early C16, with later extensions. Timber-framed and
rendered; rear extensions partly faced in C19 red brick; plaintiled roofs.
2 storeys; 3-cell plan, with the original chimney-stack set externally on the
rear wall of the hall, and a cross entry. The stack has been rebuilt in plain
red brick. 4 window range: on the upper floor, 2-light casement windows with
square-leaded panes, pintle hinges and small supporting brackets below the sills;
on the ground floor, 2 small-paned sash windows in cased frames and one cross
window with square leading. Edwardian 4-panelled entrance door, still in the
cross-entry position, with a corresponding door on the rear wall: sunk panels,
the top 2 glazed, flat pediment with shaped mock-Jacobean brackets. Frame in 4
bays, the main feature of the interior being the outstandingly fine carved and
moulded ceiling to the central 2-bay ground-floor hall, some parts of which have
been recently exposed. The main cross-beams have multiple roll-mouldings
combined with 2 rows of running-leaf design which terminate in leaf-stops. At the
intersection of these main beams is a large carving of a standing angel with
outstretched wings, surrounded by an ornate canopy: he wears flowing robes, and
carries a blank shield. The joists are of triangular section and also have
multiple roll-mouldings which terminate in leaf-stops with a central motif, varying from
one joist to another: flowers, fruit, figures and miniature trees. This amount
of detail on joist stops is very unusual. The cambered fireplace lintel, slightly
damaged by later plastering, has a lower narrow band of running-leaf carving and a
wider upper band in a different leaf design, the 2 separated by a double band of
embattled ornament; in the centre of the top band is a shield bearing the Mowbray
crest of a lion rampant. The remaining framing of the main range is plain, with
only the main components visible; the roof is inaccessible. The rear range is in
3 sections, that nearest the main house in 2 bays, into one of which a straight
flight of stairs has been inserted. On the ground floor the main beam, cut back for
later render, has supporting brackets and plain unchamfered joists.

Listing NGR: TL9863436054

External Links

• Historic England Listing
• Wikidata Q17534025

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

• 
  Oxfordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Cork: City and County (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of Ireland)
• 
  [(Shropshire)] [By (author) Nikolaus Pevsner] published on (January, 1958)
• 
  Farrow & Ball How to Decorate: Transform your home with paint & paper
• 
  Worcestershire Revised Edition (Buildings of England) (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
• 
  Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, and Peterborough (Pevsner Architectural Guides): Written by Charles O'Brien, 2014 Edition, Publisher: Yale University Press [Hardcover]