Page:The castellated and domestic architecture of Scotland from the twelfth to the eighteenth century (1887) - Volume 1.djvu/448

 THIRD PERIOD 428 DOUNE CASTLE The banqueting-hall is entered by a separate straight outside stair, which was enclosed with a wall like that to the common hall (Fig. 373). Such separate outside stairs to different parts of castles were a usual arrangement in castles surrounding a courtyard, and were also quite common in the French and English examples. This stair leads to an entrance hall, which was also used as a service room, having a door to the banqueting-hall on one side, and to the kitchen on the other. The kitchen further communicates with this entrance by two service openings in the wall, with elliptic arches (Fig. 374). This unusual form of arch is FIG. 374. Donne Castle. View in Service Room. much employed in every part of this castle, from the basement to the top floor. The kitchen is vaulted, and there are openings in the vaults over the windows, probably intended for ventilation. There is one large opening into the kitchen chimney at the apex of the vault, which is certainly provided for that purpose. Another straight outside stair leads from near the postern door in the west wall to the kitchen (Fig. 373), and from the top of this stair a newel stair leads to the parapet of the west enceinte. Another newel stair, corbelled out near the entrance to the banqueting-hall, leads to a series of rooms over the entrance lobby and kitchen. The apartment over the kitchen (Fig. 369) seems to have been a principal guest-chamber, having a handsome fireplace (one jamb of which is shown in Fig. 368) and a large window. Two small rooms (one with a garde-robe) enter off it.