Penicuik House (alternative spellings in use until mid 19th century: ''Penycuik'', ''Pennycuik'') survives as the shell of a formerly grand
estate house
An estate is a large parcel of land under single ownership, which would historically generate income for its owner.
British context
In the UK, historically an estate comprises the houses, outbuildings, supporting farmland, and woods that s ...
in
Penicuik
Penicuik ( ; sco, Penicuik; gd, Peighinn na Cuthaig) is a town and former burgh in Midlothian, Scotland, lying on the west bank of the River North Esk. It lies on the A701 midway between Edinburgh and Peebles, east of the Pentland Hills.
Na ...
,
Midlothian
Midlothian (; gd, Meadhan Lodainn) is a historic county, registration county, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh, ...
, Scotland. The 18th-century
palladian
Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...
mansion (at ) was built on the site of an earlier house by
Sir James Clerk, 3rd Baronet
There has been one creation of a baronetcy with the surname Clerk () (as distinct from Clark, Clarke and Clerke). It was created in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia by Letters Patent dated 24 March 1679, for John Clerk of Pennycuik (or Penicuik; ...
. It was destroyed by fire in 1899 and a major restoration, stabilising the ruin, was completed in 2014 by G Brown Stonemasons.
Old Penicuik House and New Penicuik House (the former stables block in which the Clerk family were living even before the fire) are both designated Category A
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
s by
Historic Environment Scotland
Historic Environment Scotland (HES) ( gd, Àrainneachd Eachdraidheil Alba) is an executive non-departmental public body responsible for investigating, caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment. HES was formed in 2015 from the mer ...
.
History
The merchant
John Clerk returned to Scotland from France in 1646 and purchased the
estate and
barony Barony may refer to:
* Barony, the peerage, office of, or territory held by a baron
* Barony, the title and land held in fealty by a feudal baron
* Barony (county division), a type of administrative or geographical division in parts of the British ...
of Penicuik, the "Penicuik Policies", including the older Newbiggin House, which he extended and improved. The estate became the residence and title of his descendants.
From 1700 to 1730, the laird
Sir John Clerk of Penicuik planted 300,000 on the estate.
[Scottish Garden Buildings by Tim Buxbaum p.11]
The current Penicuik House was built in 1761 by Sir James Clerk, the 4th Laird of Penicuik and 3rd Baronet. Clerk had travelled widely, especially in Italy, and had studied
Italian architecture
Italy has a very broad and diverse architectural style, which cannot be simply classified by period or region, due to Italy's division into various small states until 1861. This has created a highly diverse and eclectic range in architectural des ...
. Now a roofless shell, it is constructed of
ashlar
Ashlar () is finely dressed (cut, worked) stone, either an individual stone that has been worked until squared, or a structure built from such stones. Ashlar is the finest stone masonry unit, generally rectangular cuboid, mentioned by Vitruv ...
, it has a central
hexastyle
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...
portico
A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cult ...
with two-way stair,
piano nobile
The ''piano nobile'' (Italian for "noble floor" or "noble level", also sometimes referred to by the corresponding French term, ''bel étage'') is the principal floor of a palazzo. This floor contains the main reception and bedrooms of the hou ...
, basement and
Palladian
Palladian architecture is a European architectural style derived from the work of the Venetian architect Andrea Palladio (1508–1580). What is today recognised as Palladian architecture evolved from his concepts of symmetry, perspective and ...
windows. The interior was gutted by fire in 1899, but formerly had many fine rooms. The house was a great meeting point for figures of the
Scottish Enlightenment
The Scottish Enlightenment ( sco, Scots Enlichtenment, gd, Soillseachadh na h-Alba) was the period in 18th- and early-19th-century Scotland characterised by an outpouring of intellectual and scientific accomplishments. By the eighteenth century ...
, who came to view its collection of paintings, including a noted ceiling painting of
Ossian's Hall, by
Alexander Runciman
Alexander Runciman (15 August 1736 – 4 October 1785) was a Scottish painter of historical and mythological subjects. He was the elder brother of John Runciman, also a painter.
Life
He was born in Edinburgh, and studied at the Foulis Acade ...
.
Replica of Arthur's O'on
The deliberate destruction of
Arthur's O'on
Arthur's O'on ( sco, Oven) was a stone building thought to be Roman temple that, until 1743, stood on rising ground above the north bank of the River Carron not far from the old Carron ironworks in Stenhousemuir, near Falkirk, Scotland. The s ...
so appalled Sir James Clerk, that in 1760 he decided to have a dovecote built, as an exact replica of the temple, on his stable block at Penicuik House.
[
]
See also
* Clerk baronets
There has been one creation of a baronetcy with the surname Clerk () (as distinct from Clark, Clarke and Clerke). It was created in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia by Letters Patent dated 24 March 1679, for John Clerk of Pennycuik (or Penicuik; se ...
* Alexander Gordon (antiquary)
Alexander Gordon (1755) was a Scottish antiquary and singer. His survey of Roman sites, the ''Itinerarium Septentrionale'', was considered an essential reference by all Roman antiquaries of his time.
Early life and education
Gordon was born a ...
* List of Category A listed buildings in Midlothian
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
* List of country and estate houses in Scotland
This is intended to be as full a list as possible of country houses, castles, palaces, other stately homes, and manor houses in the United Kingdom and the Channel Islands; any architecturally notable building which has served as a residence ...
*
References
External links
Official website
{{coord, 55.8197, -3.2508, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title
Houses completed in 1761
Category A listed buildings in Midlothian
Listed houses in Scotland
1761 establishments in Scotland
Palladian architecture in the United Kingdom
1899 disasters in the United Kingdom
Building and structure fires in Scotland
Ruins in Midlothian
Scottish Enlightenment
Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes
Ruined houses
Listed ruins in Scotland
18th-century architecture in the United Kingdom