The Dovecote

The Dovecote dates from the early 18th century. It originally contained about 1360 nesting boxes built into the inner face of the wall, giving it a complex honeycomb-like structure. The birds came and went through the wooden turret at the top of the roof. The large rotating ladder or potence was used by the keepers who raided the nesting boxes to provide the Carews with eggs and meat. The first floor, which is not original, was probably inserted to reduce the capacity of the building as the nesting boxes below it have been bricked up. It is not known when this was done or when the dovecote went out of use, although this had almost certainly happened before the mid-19th century.  There is a Roman Coffin on the ground floor with was found in the 1930s. It is made of non-local limestone and dates from the 3rd or 4th century.