House of Pitmuies

History

The earliest recorded house at Pitmuies dates from the late 1500s. A new west-facing front was built in the 1680s, and around a century later the house was updated to 18th-century taste with two pavilions added, one a music room and the other a library, along with an ionic pillared porch and altered windows. The arched entrance to the courtyard carries date stones for 1770 and 1820, and the garden walls date from 1780.

Architecture

The house shows three distinct building phases: a late-16th-century core with a stone spiral staircase, a west front of the 1680s, and 18th-century additions including twin pavilions and an ionic pillared porch. The courtyard entrance arch bears date stones of 1770 and 1820, marking the final stages of remodelling.

Worth knowing

Pitmuies was among the first gardens in Scotland to open to the public, doing so through Scotland's Gardens Scheme in 1931.

Gardens & grounds

The walled gardens, first shown on a map of 1814 and greatly expanded since the 1920s, are unusual in surrounding the house on every side.