Description
Mid-19th century. Single storey, three-bay, rectangular-plan farm cottage/bothy with single storey, rectangular-plan store/byre at right angles to northeast forming L-plan group. Small, single storey store sited to west of main group. Roughly coursed squared rubble; stone eaves course; windows set close under eaves. Gabled end walls.Bothy: harl-pointed rubble. North (principal) elevation: boarded door at centre, flanked by a single window. Windows missing. Corniced gablehead chimneystack on west gable. Interior (seen in 1998): large fireplace to west end with massive stone lintel; storage niche to right; wall press with timber shelves intact set to right in east gable; timber-framed roof with exposed tie beams.
Byre/store: large, boarded sliding door in north gable with window above. West elevation with boarded door to right of centre. Window in gablehead of south gable. Fixed four-pane timber-framed windows (broken). Corrugated-iron roof. Interior not seen in 1998.
Store: south gable with centred boarded door. Turf roof with individual anchor stones. Interior not seen in 1998.
Statement of Interest
The previous listed building, written in 1999 describes the Bothy as displaying one of the best surviving examples of the traditional Orkney roofing technique.
The bothy is described as having a fine needled roof with turf covering and individual anchor stones at eaves. The roof consisted of a timber-frame with exposed tie beams and twisted straw simmons were visible and largely intact to the upper reaches of east end. These straw or heath simmons are thick, hand-twisted ropes which have been passed over the joists from eave to eave, packed tightly together to form a bed on which to spread loose straw. A further layer of simmons is laid over this and then covered with more straw or turf to provide a weatherproof roof. Oliphant also mentions, 'the outer or last row of simmons is weighted down by having long and heavy flagstones [bendlin-stanes] placed in the folds of the ropes immediately above the eaves. These flags prevent the thatch from being carried away by the wind'. Paul and Alison Newman note not only the unique nature of the roofing techniques, but also, by being largely composed of organic elements, their increasing rarity.
In 2013 the Buildings at Risk Register for Scotland recorded that the roof had 'almost completely collapsed'. It is not known how much or if any remnants of the traditional roof structure or materials survives in the building.
Thatched buildings are often traditionally built, showing distinctive local and regional building methods and materials. Those that survive are important in helping us understand these traditional skills and an earlier way of life.
Listed building record revised in 2019 as part of the Thatched Buildings Listing Review 2017-19.
External Links
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
Renovating Old Houses: Bringing New Life to Vintage Homes (For Pros By Pros)
Period Property Manual (New Ed)
Farrow & Ball How to Decorate: Transform your home with paint & paper
Northumberland (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)
Churches: An Architectural Guide (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Introductions)
Herefordshire (Pevsner Architectural Guides: Buildings of England)