Listed Building

The only legal part of the listing under the Planning (Listing Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 is the address/name of site. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing – see 'About Listed Buildings' below for more information. The further details below the 'Address/Name of Site' are provided for information purposes only.

Address/Name of Site

PRESTON, HAMILTON HOUSE, INCLUDING BOUNDARY WALLS, DOORWAY, GATEPIERS, GATE AND RAILINGSLB17529

Status: Designated

Documents

There are no additional online documents for this record.

Summary

Category
A
Date Added
05/02/1971
Local Authority
East Lothian
Planning Authority
East Lothian
Parish
Prestonpans
NGR
NT 38978 73983
Coordinates
338978, 673983

Description

Dated 1628, probably incorporating earlier fabric; later additions and alterations. Single storey and attic, asymmetrical, U-plan, gabled laird's house. Harled and whitewashed, with chamfered stone margins. Crowstepped gables. Strip quoins to stacks.

W (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: 6-bay, comprising 2-bay central section, projecting gabled wings to outer left and right, creating open courtyard, with entrance stair tower engaged in re-entrant angle to right, turret corbelled out at attic engaged in re-entrant angle to left, both breaking eaves. Central section with pair of windows at ground, pair of piended dormerheads breaking eaves aligned above. Single small windows at ground and attic to outer left. Canted S stair tower, with central doorpiece at ground, comprising roll-moulded jambs surmounted by decoratively tooled broken pediment, with cornice continued as string course, vertically-boarded studded timber door. Pediment with shield centred in scrolled cartouche, divided per pale comprising 3 cinquefoils to dexter, 3 crescents over mullet to sinister (arms of Hamilton and Simpson), crescent, star and date 1628 within foliate decoration; moulded window surmounted by broken pediment aligned above, with tooled inscription in lintel reading 'Praised be the Lord My Strength and My Redeimer', with pointing index finger, and winged cherub and thistle to pediment. Turret corbelled out to left with small window centred at attic. Return to right with window centred at ground, window aligned above, hugging eaves, infilled former doorway to left; return to left with window to left of centre at ground, window in part-infilled former door to right, window centred at attic, hugging eaves. Roll-moulded segmental-arched pedestrian gate to outer left with modern timber door, in wall projecting to street. Single bay gable to right with window to right at attic; single bay gable to left with window to right at attic.

S ELEVATION: 3-bay, regular fenestration at ground with gabled dormerheads breaking eaves aligned above at attic, with decoratively tooled pediments and decorative cinquefoil finials. Centre pediment with intertwined monogram of letters I, H, K, S (for John Hamilton and Katherine Simpson), flanked by date 1628, with crucifix cipher rising from left limb of letter H at apex; pediment to left with shield centred in scrolled cartouche, comprising 3 cinquefoils, flanked by initials I, H; pediment to right with shield centred in scrolled cartouche, divided per fess comprising 3 crescents over single mullet, flanked by initials K, S. 19th century postbox to outer right at ground.

E ELEVATION: 4-bay, with gabled outer bays. Door with vertically-boarded timber door to outer left, segmental-arched doorway and window to left of centre at ground, pair of windows to right of centre at ground. Pair of gabled dormerheads breaking eaves flanking centre. Small window to left of centre at attic in gable to left; window to right of centre at attic in gable to right. Evidence of former wall to left of centre at ground, to left gable.

N ELEVATION: ground floor obscured by wall; 3 gabled dormerheads with decorative pediments, breaking eaves, single window hugging eaves to outer right.

Predominantly 12-pane timber sash and case windows. Graded grey-slate roof, with stone ridge. Cast-iron rainwater goods. Gablehead, ridge and shouldered wallhead stacks; corniced and coped, with circular cans. Stone skews with beaked skewputts.

INTERIOR: modernised, large contemporary fireplace with shields and intertwined monogram of letters I, H, K, S, in Hall, some window arches with large decorative corbelled supports; variety of wall cupboards; variety of moulded stone fireplaces; exposed beams in Hall.

BOUNDARY WALLS, DOORWAY, GATEPIERS AND RAILINGS: circa 1930, low coped rubble wall and gatepiers, with ashlar coping, with geometric-pattern iron gate and railings, incorporated into earlier rubble-coped rubble wall at principal elevation. Rubble coped random rubble wall adjoining house to right at S elevation incorporating vertically-boarded timber pedestrian gate to left, corniced architraved doorway with modern timber door, to right.

Statement of Special Interest

Built as a long and low replacement for the adjacent Preston Tower (see separate listing) by Sir John Hamilton. A particularly good example of an earlier 17th century laird's house, retaining its corner turrets and crowstepped gables, and on a prominent corner site. The building may have begun as an L-plan. Although built on a smaller scale, and more informally, the U-plan arrangement and re-entrant towers of Hamilton House are typical of the series of fashionable houses linked to the King's Master of Works, Sir James Murray of Kilbaberton (Baberton House, City of Edinburgh, Winton House, East Lothian and Pitreaveie House, Dunfermline, Fife). Hamilton House was used as barracks in 1805. The EAA sketchbook shows a courtyard stair, now removed, in the re-entrant angle to left, and the door in the re-entrant angle stair tower, to right, infilled. Hamilton House is the property of the National Trust for Scotland.

References

Bibliography

EDINBURGH ARCHITECTURAL ASSOCIATION SKETCH BOOK, VOL II (1878-79), plate 49; RCAHMS, INVENTORY OF MONUMENTS AND CONSTRUCTIONS IN THE COUNTY OF EAST LOTHIAN (1924), p158; C McWilliam, LOTHIAN (1978), p391; D Howard, SCOTTISH ARCHITECTURE FROM REFORMATION TO RESTORATION 1560-1660 (1995), p82.

About Listed Buildings

Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating sites and places at the national level. These designations are Scheduled monuments, Listed buildings, Inventory of gardens and designed landscapes and Inventory of historic battlefields.

We make recommendations to the Scottish Government about historic marine protected areas, and the Scottish Ministers decide whether to designate.

Listing is the process that identifies, designates and provides statutory protection for buildings of special architectural or historic interest as set out in the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997.

We list buildings which are found to be of special architectural or historic interest using the selection guidance published in Designation Policy and Selection Guidance (2019)

Listed building records provide an indication of the special architectural or historic interest of the listed building which has been identified by its statutory address. The description and additional information provided are supplementary and have no legal weight.

These records are not definitive historical accounts or a complete description of the building(s). If part of a building is not described it does not mean it is not listed. The format of the listed building record has changed over time. Earlier records may be brief and some information will not have been recorded.

The legal part of the listing is the address/name of site which is known as the statutory address. Other than the name or address of a listed building, further details are provided for information purposes only. Historic Environment Scotland does not accept any liability for any loss or damage suffered as a consequence of inaccuracies in the information provided. Addresses and building names may have changed since the date of listing. Even if a number or name is missing from a listing address it will still be listed. Listing covers both the exterior and the interior and any object or structure fixed to the building. Listing also applies to buildings or structures not physically attached but which are part of the curtilage (or land) of the listed building as long as they were erected before 1 July 1948.

While Historic Environment Scotland is responsible for designating listed buildings, the planning authority is responsible for determining what is covered by the listing, including what is listed through curtilage. However, for listed buildings designated or for listings amended from 1 October 2015, legal exclusions to the listing may apply.

If part of a building is not listed, it will say that it is excluded in the statutory address and in the statement of special interest in the listed building record. The statement will use the word 'excluding' and quote the relevant section of the 1997 Act. Some earlier listed building records may use the word 'excluding', but if the Act is not quoted, the record has not been revised to reflect subsequent legislation.

Listed building consent is required for changes to a listed building which affect its character as a building of special architectural or historic interest. The relevant planning authority is the point of contact for applications for listed building consent.

Find out more about listing and our other designations at www.historicenvironment.scot/advice-and-support. You can contact us on 0131 668 8914 or at designations@hes.scot.

Images

There are no images available for this record, you may want to check Canmore for images relating to PRESTON, HAMILTON HOUSE, INCLUDING BOUNDARY WALLS, DOORWAY, GATEPIERS, GATE AND RAILINGS

There are no images available for this record.

Search Canmore

Printed: 29/03/2024 07:37