When it comes to Country Life bingo, properties such as Muston Manor, a Grade II-listed 17th century manor house, ticks quite a lot of boxes.
It is, as just mentioned, listed — tick, we like that.
It has plenty of room; about 5,748sq ft, to be precise (tick) and ‘well-tended grounds’ of about 3 acres, including a walled kitchen garden (tick), hard tennis court (tick) and a swimming pool (dug into the ground, tick).
On the market with DOMVS for £2.5 million, the property comes with seven bedrooms, seven bathrooms and lashings of history. The land on which Muston Manor sits was originally held by the monastery of Cerne up until the dissolution, when the manor was sold to John Bartlett, and then onto John Churchill of Stinsford in 1609. It’s believed that the current Muston Manor was built in 1650; however, the main door arch is thought to be Saxon in origin, perhaps an existing structure incorporated into the new house.
That sense of history still permeates throughout the home. There are plenty of exposed beams throughout, stone mullioned windows seem to be standard, and plenty of the reception rooms (and indeed some of the bedrooms) feature fireplaces. A particular highlight is the central staircase, which is made of wood and extends the full height of the house.
The majority of the bedrooms are on the first floor, including the master bedroom, which boasts a bathroom that is almost bigger than the bedroom itself. On the second storey is something known as a ‘flatlet’, which provides two further bedrooms and a second kitchen, which would be handy if you are sulking/hiding from your parents.
Outside, the gardens and grounds are ‘carefully curated’ and extend to approximately 3.17 acres in all. Mostly laid to lawn (including a croquet lawn), there are also wildflower areas, a walled kitchen garden, a sheltered walled terrace (where you would find the swimming pool) and another enclosed wall area. There is also a paved walkway down to a terrace, from which you can sit and watch the River Piddle flow past.
The Piddle Valley ‘captures the essence of rural England’, per agents, and Piddlehinton itself is just five miles from the county town of Dorchester. It offers a beautiful church and a local pub, while the many attractions of the Jurrasic Coast and Dorset AONB are on the doorstep.
Credit: Strutt and Parker
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