Records of the decorated fireplaces at Middle Moor, Sowton

Prior to its demolition in 1971 to make way for Sowton Industrial Estate, Middle Moor Farm at Sowton was one of the parish's finest farmhouses. It proved to be a medieval building with a long history of Tudor, Stuart and Georgian additions.

The two decorative schemes shown here were recorded in 1971 prior to demolition. They were scratched through plaster surrounding the fireplaces. They show flowers in pots, birds, imitation marble and chequer patterns; they date to the mid 17th century.

Publication: T.J. Miles 1989 'Seventeenth-Century Sgraffito-Decorated Fireplaces at Middle Moor, Sowton' in Proceedings of the Devon Archaeological Society (47) pp 136-8.

Acknowledgments: Trevor Miles RAM Museum