Prysten House is a
Grade I listed
In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
15th century merchant's house situated close to
St Andrew's Church in the city of
Plymouth
Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...
, England. It is a large U-shaped three storey split level house built 1498 and extended 1635.
Construction
It is constructed from Plymouth
limestone
Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
rubble using
relieving arches with
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, South West England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers .
The granite that forms the uplands dates from the Carb ...
granite
Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
hooded and
ogee
An ogee ( ) is an object, element, or curve—often seen in architecture and building trades—that has a serpentine- or extended S-shape (Sigmoid curve, sigmoid). Ogees consist of a "double curve", the combination of two semicircle, semicircula ...
-framed Tudor dressings to glazed window openings, dry Devon
slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous, metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade, regional metamorphism. It is the finest-grained foliated metamorphic ro ...
roofs and two original lateral chimney stacks. The front has a distinctive and fine granite transomed bay window arrangement over a decorated and hooded doorway.
History
The building is owned by The Minster Church of St Andrew and has been used as a
museum
A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or Preservation (library and archive), preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private colle ...
and a
restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery (commerce), food delivery services. Restaurants ...
, but contrary to the misnomer has never been a priest's house, its name originating simply from its close proximity to
St Andrew's Church, Plymouth.
Prysten House is home to the Plymouth Tapestry designed by Eric Mor and displays a model of Plymouth in 1620. the museum is not open to the public, but the restaurant is open.
[ retrieved 11 April 2015]
Prysten House also features the "Door of Unity" commemorating the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...
.
See also
*
Grade I listed buildings in Plymouth
References
{{coord, 50.36943, -4.13990, format=dms, type:landmark_region:GB, display=title
Grade I listed houses in Devon
Buildings and structures in Plymouth, Devon