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Summary

Description

Dated 1676; probably remodelled 18th century. 2-storey, 5-bay house (formerly 2 houses). Painted ashlar margins; eaves course; terracotta coloured harling to front; cream coloured harling to rear.

N (PRINCIPAL) ELEVATION: ground floor window to far left; 1st floor window above to right. 2 doors to near centre. Window to right of doors; 1st floor window centred above. Door to far right; 1st floor window above to left. Small window; exposed stone surround above 2nd door. Monogrammed plaque dated 1676 above right of 2nd door,

(bearing initials M, G, C and I or J).

E ELEVATION: attached to Beechwood House.

S ELEVATION: ground floor window to left; 2 1st floor windows above at eaves. Pitched porch to right house; window in left return; ground floor window to left. 2 1st floor windows above to left and right. Later pitched stone extension to far right. Modern (late 20th century) piended stone and glazed conservatory added on to S of stone extension. Single storey piended wash-house attached to far left. Door and 3 windows in right return; exposed stone rubble walls.

W ELEVATION: attached to Sandhaven, House (Laing).

12-pane timber sash and case windows. Window to rear has 2 casement upper lights; 8 fixed lower lights. 4 rear rooflights. 4 rooflights to rear wash-house. 2-leaf timber panelled entrance doors; timber boarded door to passage. Pitched slate roof. Slate roofs to rear outshots excepting glazed conservatory roof. Corniced gable end stacks; polygonal cans. Corniced central ridge stack.

INTERIOR: 2nd door opens directly onto staircase. Doorway to left leads down into lower room (former separate building). Large plain fireplace to E gable wall. Hoist crane attached to former outer wall of this room, to S. Kitchen to W; Edwardian range; decorative tiles. Flagstoned passage to far W; blocked door within passage provided communication to adjacent W house (Laing). Red brick floor to wash-house; copper boiler in SE corner.

SUNDIAL

Horizontal dial on ashlar baluster pedestal in garden. Initials RM ?AL remain on horizontal stone and later gnomon. Central sections to each face contain a sundial; gnomons missing.

GARDEN WALL

Sandstone rubble wall encloses rear garden.

Statement of Special Interest

It is possible that Pear Tree Cottage was originally 2 houses, (or house and workshop) connected internally by a door next to the staircase. The laigh room (to the E) has its own front door to Low Causeway and was used as a garden store with an earthen floor until renovation in the late 20th century. The kitchen (to the W) had a box bed until late 20th century. Formerly listed as House (Mrs Laing) Low Causeway, South Side. Mrs Laing lived here until late 20th century and her son lived in the adjacent W house Sandhaven, House (Laing) which may explain the connecting door in the passage, or it may have provided access to what could have been a communal wash-house for these 3 houses. The sundial was moved from the centre of the garden (where the garden was divided between the 2 houses) and moved closer to the house in the late 20th century. The garden wall was part of the sea wall which extends southeast and north-westwards bounding the gardens of the adjacent houses. Prior to the reclamation of the Sandhaven in the late 19th century, the Firth of Forth extended up to this point. For brief history of Culross Burgh see Culross, The Cross, The Study.

References

Bibliography

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