Ravensworth, terrace and terrace wall

HER Number:
13465

District:
Gateshead

Site Name:
Ravensworth, terrace and terrace wall

Place:
Ravensworth

Map Sheet:
NZ25NW

Class:
Gardens Parks and Urban Spaces

Site Type: Broad:
Garden

Site Type: Specific:
Terraced Garden

General Period:
Early Modern

Specific Period:
C19

Form of Evidence:
Structure

Description:
The formal terrace is defined to the south and west by a battered sandstone wall, parallel with the former south face of the Nash House (HER 8183), that ranges in height from 0.5m to 3m. Some remnants of ornamental planting survive, including yew and rhododendron. The stone base of a garden ornament is hidden in the undergrowth to the east. Two large trees, a Wellingtonia and a Giant Redwood, survive along the edge of the terrace walls. A group of mature Yew trees occupy the south-west corner of the terrace around an artificial mound. The masonry and copings of the terrace wall are mostly intact although only remnants of the railings remain. The once open character of the grassed terrace and its relationship with the Nash House has virtually been lost. Views from the terrace over fields to the south are still uninterrupted, but the terrace itself is very overgrown and its shape difficult to discern beneath the weeds and shrubs. Possibly built over an earlier terrace.

Easting:
2319

Northing:
5905

Grid Reference:
NZ23195905

Lats/Lons:

Sources:
North of England Civic Trust, April 2008, Ravensworth Castle and Estate, Gateshead, Conservation Plan, Appendix A, pages 46-7, gazetteer no. 1I