fife-kinross-clackmannan-1933/03-533

Transcription

DOLLAR.] INVENTORY OF MONUMENTS IN CLACKMANNANSHIRE. [DOLLAR.

8 feet 2 inches within walls 2 feet 3 inches
thick.

THE TOWER. - The tower (Fig. 506) stands on
an outcrop of rock at the highest point of the site.
Oblong on plan, it measures 42 1/2 feet by 30 1/4 feet
over walls 7 1/2 feet thick, and rises to a height of
59 1/4 feet. Three of its four storeys are vaulted,
the uppermost of the vaults being of a later
time than those below. The masonry consists
of an outer and inner casing of squared ashlar,
built in courses 10 to 11 inches in height, with a
core of whinstone rubble. The chamfer is the
only moulding employed on the dressings of the
voids. The roof is flat, but it cannot be quite
certain that it had this form before the insertion
of the top vault. The low parapet is on the
same vertical plane as the walls and is borne on
separate corbels, some of which have originally
been destined for use elsewhere. At the angles
of the building are open 'rounds' supported
on continuous corbelling which runs below the
course of separate corbels. Gargoyles once
projected from the face of each 'round,' and
there appear to have been three others on the
west parapet, but to-day only the one on the
north-western 'round' survives in a fairly
complete state. It is open to question whether
the parapet, corbel-course, and 'rounds' are
original features
There are two entrances to the tower. The
first is in the west wall. It was originally on
ground-floor level, but its threshold was
lowered some 3 1/2 feet in the process of cutting
away the rock in order to provide an even sur-
face for the erection of the courtyard buildings.
The second is in the south wall at first-floor
level. It was originally reached by a forestair,
either of wood or of stone, which was removed
about the end of the 16th or the beginning of the
17th century when its place was taken by a
new turnpike.
The ground-floor entrance, which has a semi-
circular head, has been fitted with two doors,
the outer opening outwards, the inner inwards.
It admits to a mural lobby, on the left of which
a small service-stair rises to the Hall above,
while in front is a doorway with a pointed arch,
leading into a single chamber, walled in squared
ashlar and ceiled with a barrel-vault. In the
south wall of this room there have been two
narrow loopholes, of which only the one on the
west remains, the other having been converted
into a door, giving access from the foot of the
new turnpike.
The first floor is occupied by the Hall, which
is also vaulted. The entrance at the south-east
was partly rebuilt when the new turnpike was
formed. In the thickness of the wall on the
east side of it lies a prison with a 'pit' below,
the latter reached by means of a hatch and
provided with a flue for ventilation. The Hall
fireplace, with plain jambs and arched head
surmounted by a chamfered cornice, is set in
the east wall, and beside it but, high up, is a
small window. There is a similar window in the
opposite wall. The chamber, however, was
mainly lit from a window looking south, the
daylight of which was enlarged in the later
16th century. In the north wall are the remains
of a buffet with an ogival head, the head and
the jambs being wrought with a quirked edge-
roll. At the north-western corner is the entrance
to the straight service-stair which rises from
the ground floor, while at the south-western
corner is a turnpike, which was the original
access from the hall to the upper floors and
roof. This second stair went out of use and its
steps were removed when the turnpike of
c. 1600 was constructed, the latter giving direct
access to all floors both of the tower and of the
addition of which it formed part.
The second ceiling is not vaulted, and the joists
of the ceiling are carried on moulded corbels,
which are unusually deep though they project
but slightly. The present entrance is from the
new turnpike, and has been cut through the
end of a small lobby in the south wall which
previously led to a garderobe built in the south-
east corner. The opening into the garderobe
was now blocked and a new one formed in the
east wall. The original entrance, which is set
in the west wall and which is checked for double
doors, communicated with the old turnpike
through a mural lobby. Here, and on the floor
above, the stair encroaches slightly on the area
of the room. The fireplace is in the north wall.
The jambs have a quirked edge-roll with fillet
and are original, but the segmental head, bearing
a bead and quirk, is a later addition. The east
side contains a locker checked for a door.
There are two windows. The one on the west
is small and has a raking rear-arch. The other,
facing south, is large, its daylight having been
widened and heightened in the late 16th century;

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