ITEM NO 85

Craig Ailey Villa, South Ailey Road, Cove. with boundary wall,gates and gatepiers.

Group with items:                                    CAT: A

MAP Ref : NS 22218137                           Date of Listing 14/5/71

Alexander Thomson, 1850. 2-storey,asymmetrical, rectangular-plan, gabled Lombardic villa. Whinstone and sandstone rubble with stugged, rusticated margins and dressings; colonnette mullions: deep striated base course, moulded string course; projecting bracketted eaves; round-arched windows.

SE (entrance) elevation: L-plan, 3 bays, gable to outer right with belvedere tower and porch in re-entrant angle to left. Piend-roofed porch to outer left, steps, rusticated die with lions; door framed by Doric pilasters, keystone, 2-leaf door, timber eaves band; round-arched arcade of 7 narrow lights on left return, colonnette mullions. 3-stage tower slightly recessed to right, full-height round arched recess with narrow bipartite round-headed window at ground, large round-headed, border-glazed stair window above. Stylised machicolated corbel course at upper stage, 3 small rectangular windows directly under eaves. Lower, gabled block slightly advanced to outer right right, large round arched bipartite window set into recessed rectangular panel, round-arched window in gablehead.

SW elevation: L-plan with advanced gabled to left, porch and tower in re-entrant angle to right. Gable with bow on deep, battered, vertically-laid masonry base, projecting bracketted roof; round arched window at 1st floor. Left return of porch to outer right, tower rising behind.

NW elevation: 3 bays. Single story gabled scullery block to outer left, bipartite window; broad door immediately to right, rusticated margin. 3 bays symmetrically disposed at 1st floor, tipartite window at centre, flanking pair of diminutive blind arches.

NE elevation: block with blank ground floor to outer left. 3 diminutive blind arches at 1st floor; gabled block slightly advanced to right, window at centre ground, 2 windows symmetrically disposed at 1st floor. Single storey scullery block to outer right, quadripartite window disposed to left of centre.

4-pane over 6-pane timber sash and case windows, plate glass over 2-lying-pane timber sash and case windows in round-headed windows. Grey slate roof, lead flashings piended roof for porch, low pyramidal roof for tower; rusticated wallhead stack on ashlar base, single narrow octagonal can (others missing).

Interior: narrow hall opening off vestibule, narrow stair to right, decorative cast-iron balusters; doors deeply-set in segmental-headed opening, roll-moulding, wreath and lyre moulding above door. Decorative plasterwork, egg and dart moulding, floral paterae in main downstairs room; segmented-headed recess in dining room at rear. Small webbed, leaded oculus lighting 1st floor landing, egg and dart plaster moulding around carved wooden octagonal opening. Belvedere reached by step ladder.

Balustrades: small semicircular balustrade to S of house along avenue. Ashlar terminals with squat urn finials, ashlar base, die, slab coping, stocky, vase-like, sandstone balusters.
Longer balustrade to W of house, with central patio area with table sundial. Ashlar, arcade balusters, square ashlar die, squat urn finails, rusticated saddleback coping; paved patio viewing area at centre, sundial, ashlar die, that to left with freestanding fiqurative carving of the 4 winds.

Boundary wall, gatepiers, gates: whinstone boundary wall with quartz coping, wall immediately bounding gates with sandstone, pierced oval panels on whinstone base. Main gatepiers of blocky, square rusticated piers, recessed arched panels infilled with quartz pebbles at low level, upper panel jettied on stylised machicolation, mirroring the upper of belvedere tower, square panels with quartz pebble infil, low pyramidal cap with ashlar domed finial on deep dentilled cornice. Pedestrian gate to left, round gatepier of quartz pebbles, sandstone fluted neck with domed cap. Cast-iron gates of swirling lines and florel paterae motifs.

References: F A Walker and F Sinclair, North Clyde Estuary (1992), p111. Blackie, Villa and Cottege Architecture, (Glasgow 1868, 1871, 1878). R McFadzean, The Life and Work of Alexander Greek Thomson, (1979), p24. 26-31

Notes: Craig Ailey was designed by Alexander Thomson for John McElroy who fued and developed much of the Cove and Kilcreggan area. The house was featured in Blackie's Villa and Cottage Architecture and while the villa was built as illustrated some of the finer detailing, such as the balustrade over the bow and treatment of the chimneys and cans, differs from the design as featured in the book. The house in a fine example of Thomson's villa work of this period. The former stables to the rear of the house are in a poor condition and are presently used for storage. The deep arch heads were picked up by Frederick Pilkington for designs like Egremont, 38 Dick Place, Edinburgh.