Copsetown Abbey

Detached five-bay single-storey over raised basement house, built c. 1800, having two-storey rear elevation,with two-storey flat-roofed addition to rear and glazed aluminum porch to basement level at south end of facade. Sprocketed hipped slate roof with clay ridge tiles and rendered chimneystacks with terracotta chimney pots. Painted roughcast rendered walls to ground floor and smooth rendered to basement. Square-headed window openings having replacement uPVC windows, those to basement set into segmental-headed recesses. Square-headed entrance doorway having part-glazed timber panelled door and paned overlight, approached by flight of limestone steps having cast-iron railings. Segmental-headed door opening to rear having timber battened door and paned overlight, with limestone threshold and cast-iron bootscrape. Rectangular-plan cobbled courtyard to rear of house, surrounded by outbuildings with pitched slate roofs. Three-bay single-storey outbuilding to south, having rendered walls and square-headed openings with timber battened and half-glazed timber panelled doors. Five-bay two-storey south range with coursed limestone rubble walls, round-headed recess to east gable with decorative stone surround and reused architectural fragment, square-headed openings with limestone surrounds and timber fittings, and elliptical-arched vehicular entrances, one with double-leaf timber battened door. Seven-bay two-storey west range having three-storey gable-fronted middle bay with decorative limestone copings and brackets, round and square-headed window openings to first floor with timber fittings and square-headed window openings to ground floor having limestone surrounds and timber fittings, one with remains of timber sliding sash window. Square-headed doorways to ground floor with limestone surrounds and timber battened doors. Two-storey north range with eight-bay ground floor and five-bay first floor having coursed limestone rubble walls, round-headed window to east gable with decorative stone surround and timber boarding, square-headed openings having limestone surrounds and timber fittings, and elliptical-arched vehicular entrance to west having tooled limestone surround and double-leaf timber battened door. Rendered cart loading platform approached by three rendered steps to south elevation. Recent wall dividing yard in two having wrought-iron pedestrian gate. Coursed rubble wall to south-west of house. Limestone ashlar entrance walls topped with decorative wrought-iron railings terminating in square-plan limestone ashlar piers with double-leaf decorative wrought-iron gates.

This pleasant mid-nineteenth-century villa-style house presents a symmetrical façade. This and the sweeping approach give it a grandeur that belies its relatively small stature. The house retains some interesting features including its sprocheted slate roof and timber panelled door reached by steep limestone steps and railings. The formal courtyard to the rear retains a strong original character, with classical symmetrical proportions. The house, courtyard and entrance gates form a cohesive grouping in the landscape.