Page:The castellated and domestic architecture of Scotland from the twelfth to the eighteenth century (1887) - Volume 2.djvu/208

 FOURTH PERIOD - 1 92 - GRANTON HOUSE the east, which is still enclosed with its ancient wall, bounded 011 the south-east by the rocky channel of the burn which forms the boundary between this property and that of Royston or Caroline Park. An old summer-house and terrace still survive at the north-west corner of the garden, but outside the wall, from which a fine view of the Firth of Forth, etc., is obtained. This house is a good example of the amount of fortification still con- sidered necessary in the troubled times when it was built, as well as of the improved domestic and residential accommodation which were being introduced in the early part of the seventeenth century. The desire for regularity and symmetry in the elevation is also distinctly seen in the alterations on the south front. The house and property were bought in 1740 by the Duke of Argyll and Greenwich, and added to his estate of Caroline Park. They now belong to the Duke of Buccleuch. BISHOP'S HOUSE, BRECKNESS, ORKNEY. This house, which bears the date 1633, stands near the south-western point of the mainland of Orkney, and about two miles from Strom- ness. It was the residence of Bishop Graham, the last Bishop of Orkney. The house is built on the L plan, but has some peculiarities (Fig. 650). For instance, the entrance doorway is not, as of yore, in the re-entering angle of the wing, but on the opposite side, and the staircase to the first floor is one long straight flight. The wing is of unusual size, and con- tains the kitchen, with its large fireplace. The first floor contained a long hall or dining-room (37 feet by 13 feet). FIG. 650. Bishop's House. Plan. A newel staircase leads from the first-floor landing to the upper stories, and is so placed as to give easy access to the three apartments into which the upper floor would naturally be divided. The exterior of the house is plain, the doorway being the only part having any attempt