Gated Dovecote (Pre-Painted)

In the middle ages only nobles had the right to have dovecotes, lesser men would have had to ask the permission of their Lord. In time such restrictions lessened and dovecotes became common in the gable ends of rural buildings, above a henhouse, or a kennel, even over a bread oven, or wine cellar. Though always their design and proportion was governed by regional law and customs; and always built to be in proportion to the importance of their owner's social standing.

Though purpose designed large dovecote were found among the buildings of a grange, over the generations some farms would be made from an old grange complex and so eventually it could be that a simple farm may have a large and impressive dovecote (eg. the farm buildings of La Haye Sainte were built originally as a grange complex, later one of the buildings was altered to become a farm house and the old gated dovecote still remained as the farmyard entrance).