Rathmullan House

Secondary gateway serving Rathmullan House (see 40819012), erected c. 1860, comprising a central pair of rubble stone gate piers (on square-plan) having cut stone coping over. Gateway flanked to either side (north and south) by curved quadrant sections of rubble stone boundary wall terminated to either end by dressed ashlar gate piers (on square-plan) having cut stone coping over. Sections of rubble stone estate wall to either side (north and south), to the north boundary of former walled garden to the south (to south of start service entrance to rear of Rathmullan House, and to the south of main gateway (see 40819025) to the south. Located at the start of long approach avenue to the north of Rathmullan House, and to the north of Rathmullan town centre.

This modest sweeping gateway was originally built to serve a secondary entrance to Rathmullan House (see 40819012) to the south. It is one of three gateways (see 40819025) for main gateway to house to the south). It originally dates to the second half of the nineteenth century, and may have been built around 1870 when Rathmullan House itself was great extended and modified. The inner gate piers are built using rubble stone masonry and were probably originally rendered. These piers may have been rebuilt following extension works to the house, now a hotel, from the 1960s onwards. The sweeping quadrant walls to either side are constructed in coursed rubble stone masonry, and were also probably originally rendered. Perhaps of most interest are the outer terminating piers that were constructed using dressed ashlar or reconstituted stone; these are similar to a pier to the south-east corner of the walled garden (see 40819022) at Rathmullan House. The sections of rubble stone estate walling to either side, to the south (along the west elevation of former walled garden to the south side of service entrance to rear of house), and the surviving section of rubble stone boundary wall to the south side of the main gateway to the south all add to the historic setting and context of this site. These features form part of an interesting group of related structures associated with Rathmullan House (see 40819012), which together represent an integral element of the built heritage of the local area.