The Cellar


This article was uploaded by Nicholas Cleak at 23:38 09 February 2008

The Mansion has a cellar, but no ordinary cellar, it has chambers and passageways in remarkable condition, there has been rubble piled in a couple of places, but there is a wonderful arched main chamber about 13 feet wide and six feet tall quite long and lined with bricks, The roof of this chamber has 18 inch diameter vents at each end which vent through to the ground outside. (NM153) In the corner of the long arched chamber is a tunnel about two feet square containing a long ten inch pipe already heavily sloping into the distance, it probably goes down to the river … or perhaps vents into the caves which are under the site.

All the walls and ceilings are whitewashed and don’t seem to have deteriorated much since they were last used nearly 100 years ago. There are a number of chambers and passages as well as the steam boiler which still remains with its Six inch diameter feed and return pipes (NM009). One passageway which heads on under the house is blocked with rubble, in one chamber is a brick built wine rack with numbered compartments (NM010).

In the war the cellars were used as an air-raid shelter for local St.Arvans residents and had beds and oil lamps and food stocks.

What ever happens to the rest of the house this cellar must be preserved for various reasons.