DOI Heft:
Nr. 106 (December, 1905)
DOI Artikel:Morris, G. L.; Wood, Esther: The country cottage and the materials used in its construction
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.26961#0193
The Country Cottage
A COTTAGE IN SUSSEX C. SPOONER, ARCHITECT
more imaginative and open-minded of modern
architects have been quick to find this out. The
cottage of Mr. Detmar Blow (page 147) is a charm-
ing example of what to
build in Wiltshire. He
has caught the spirit of the
county without falling into
the mistake of merely try-
ing to get an “ old ” effect,
and his knowledge of local
traditional forms subserves
his individual way of
treating them.
For notwithstanding a
good deal of purely sen-
timental idealization that
is lavished on old cottages
because they are old, it
remains a fact that a large
measure of the beauty of
ancient buildings is that
which is bestowed upon
them by the handof time.
In other words, one of the
vital secrets of building is
the choice of materials
which shall not deterio-
rate, but be enhanced in
appearance by the wear
and tear of life.
In Kent and Sussex, stone cottages are often
finished with brick, and these are sometimes, but
not always, of later date. Their main characteristics
are their simplicity of form and the way they seem
always seeking to maintain an unbroken line. In
Yorkshire and in Northamptonshire stone cottages
are the rule, and in the latter county the rieh yellow-
ochre colour of the stone is highly characteristic and
gives its distinct keynote to the somewhat flat but
verdant and pastoral landscape. As we move
eastward, over marsh and fen, and among the
broads and plains of East Anglia, lighter and
more Dutch-looking methods with much lime-wash
and plaster seem perfectly to suit the spirit of the
place. The modern method of rough-cast walling
is often convenient here, and supplies a pleasant
and less exacting medium than those discussed
above. It is in fact the best of all methods for
general application when local or more difficult
materials fail. One might almost paraphrase a
familar maxim and say “ When in doubt play rough-
cast,” for it is at once the least and most local of
materials, harmonizing equally well with tiles,
stone, brick, thatch and slate. Mr. C. F. A.
Voysey was one of the first to discover this useful
characteristic of the rough-cast, and to employ
it in various districts without any artistic
3calc or | t I 1 I ! I [ I I | - -- } • - | — [ reerr
PLANS OF COTTAGES AT ABINGER, SURREY W. DÜNN & R. WATSON, ARCHITECTS
149
A COTTAGE IN SUSSEX C. SPOONER, ARCHITECT
more imaginative and open-minded of modern
architects have been quick to find this out. The
cottage of Mr. Detmar Blow (page 147) is a charm-
ing example of what to
build in Wiltshire. He
has caught the spirit of the
county without falling into
the mistake of merely try-
ing to get an “ old ” effect,
and his knowledge of local
traditional forms subserves
his individual way of
treating them.
For notwithstanding a
good deal of purely sen-
timental idealization that
is lavished on old cottages
because they are old, it
remains a fact that a large
measure of the beauty of
ancient buildings is that
which is bestowed upon
them by the handof time.
In other words, one of the
vital secrets of building is
the choice of materials
which shall not deterio-
rate, but be enhanced in
appearance by the wear
and tear of life.
In Kent and Sussex, stone cottages are often
finished with brick, and these are sometimes, but
not always, of later date. Their main characteristics
are their simplicity of form and the way they seem
always seeking to maintain an unbroken line. In
Yorkshire and in Northamptonshire stone cottages
are the rule, and in the latter county the rieh yellow-
ochre colour of the stone is highly characteristic and
gives its distinct keynote to the somewhat flat but
verdant and pastoral landscape. As we move
eastward, over marsh and fen, and among the
broads and plains of East Anglia, lighter and
more Dutch-looking methods with much lime-wash
and plaster seem perfectly to suit the spirit of the
place. The modern method of rough-cast walling
is often convenient here, and supplies a pleasant
and less exacting medium than those discussed
above. It is in fact the best of all methods for
general application when local or more difficult
materials fail. One might almost paraphrase a
familar maxim and say “ When in doubt play rough-
cast,” for it is at once the least and most local of
materials, harmonizing equally well with tiles,
stone, brick, thatch and slate. Mr. C. F. A.
Voysey was one of the first to discover this useful
characteristic of the rough-cast, and to employ
it in various districts without any artistic
3calc or | t I 1 I ! I [ I I | - -- } • - | — [ reerr
PLANS OF COTTAGES AT ABINGER, SURREY W. DÜNN & R. WATSON, ARCHITECTS
149