house, CALHAME (DUNKINEELY) · NIAH 40909211

This charming and well-maintained thatched vernacular house retains its early form and character, and is an appealing feature in the isolated rural landscape to the north of Dunkineely. Its architectural integrity and visual expression ins enhanced by the retention of the majority of its salient fabric, including timber sliding sash windows. Modest in scale, it exhibits the simple and functional form of vernacular building in Ireland. Of particular interest in the survival of the thatch roof, although recently renewed, which is now sadly becoming increasingly rare in Donegal. The rounded roof is a typical feature of thatched houses located close to the sea in exposed areas in the north-west of Ireland, while the pegs to the eaves were used to tie ropes (and sometimes nets) over the roof to secure it against the prevailing winds, as is the case here at Calhame. The largely blank rear elevation is a typical feature of many small-scale vernacular dwellings in rural Ireland. The form of this building and location of the chimneystacks suggests that this building is of the ‘direct entry’ type that is characteristic of the vernacular tradition in north-west Ireland, and also suggests that this building was extended to the north by a bay at some stage. The substantial two-storey rubble stone outbuilding to site adds considerably the setting and context of this dwelling, and is an important vernacular survival in its own right. The flight of stone steps giving access to a door at first floor level is a feature of many vernacular outbuildings in rural Donegal, particularly in the south-west of the county. This house represents a fine surviving example of a once ubiquitous building type in the rural Irish countryside, and is one of the better and more attractive surviving examples of its type in County Donegal.