Listed Building record MDO47580 - Outer Gatehouse of Abbotsbury Abbey, Church Street, Abbotsbury

The outer gatehouse of St. Peter's Abbey provided access to the Abbey precinct from the north. Dated to the 14th century, the gatehouse is now ruined, but includes the remains of an archway constructed of moulded ashlar and rubble-stone.

Outer Monastic Gatehouse. C14 and C15 fragments. Pieces of moulded ashlar and rubble-stone. Outer archway: west jamb and springer of the main segmental arch survive; within this is possibly the springer of the pedestrian entrance arch, re-set. The north wall extends west of this opening for 5 metres, and has C12 and later medieval carved stonework re-set into it. The inner archway of the gate- house is represented by the lower part of its east chamfered jamb. The interval between the two arches is 2.5 metres.

The above description is derived from the associated designation record, the validity of which has not been checked.

The Outer Gatehouse to the precinct of the Abbey is to the W. of the site of the abbey-church. It now consists of fragments
on both sides of the road, and is perhaps of 14th century date. <4>

These are ruins of a gatehouse which stood across the road until circa 1790 when it was pulled down. Engravings of the gatehouse may be seen in the vestry of the south aisle of the parish church. <3>

The remains of the Gatehouse on the East side of the road consists of one large stone - visible in the GP - and behind it another small stone bonded into the street wall and projecting outwards. The apparently substantial remains on the East of the road and visible in the GP appear to have no connections and are offset by 5.0M from the straight of the remains on the West. <5>

The remains consist of a small piece of walling on the west of the road as shown on the 1:2500 plan in SY 58 NE 35. At the west end of the wall is a treble butress and at its east end a small fragment of the arch still survives. See ground photograph. <6>

Gateway 60 yards N of Abbey Dairy. Ruinated. The jambs remain and enough else to show that it was originally a large gatehouse of medieval date. In the adjacent wall are various carved fragments of stone. (7) Ministry of Housing and Local Government (Historic Houses Record) Dorchester Rural District October 1951

<1> Ordnance Survey, Ordnance Survey 1 to 25 inch scale map, 1902 (Map). SDO18020.

(SY 57708520) Gateway (NR) (Rems. of) (NAT)

<2> Oliver, Vere L, Miscellaneous Notes on Abbotsbury (box file, Dorset Museum) (Unpublished document). SDO20381.

<3> Moule, Rev W S, 1946, Abbotsbury The Church Abbey and Other Points of Interest, 20 (Monograph). SWX1589.

<4> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments England, 1952, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume I (West), 7 (Monograph). SDO97.

'The outer Gatehouse stood across the road but is now reduced to fragments on both sides. It is perhaps of the 14th century…'

<5> Rigg, J, Field Investigators Comments JR, F1 Rigg JR 15/04/55 (Unpublished document). SWX1255.

<6> Swatridge, G C, Various, Field Investigators Comments GCS, F2 Swatridge GC 23/05/1955 (Unpublished document). SWX1169.

<7> Historic England, Historic England Archive, OS55/F88/8 (Index). SDO14738.

14THC REMAINS OF OUTER GATEHOUSE AT ABBOTSBURY FROM THE SOUTH

<8> National Record of the Historic Environment, 450436 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Dec 12 2024 3:59PM