Mavisbank House

Mavisbank is a country house outside Loanhead, south of Edinburgh in Midlothian, Scotland. It was designed by the architect William Adam, in collaboration with his client, Sir John Clerk of Penicuik, and was constructed between 1723 and 1727. The first Palladian villa in Scotland, it is described by Historic Scotland as "one of Scotland's most important country houses". The house was altered in the 19th century, but suffered decades of neglect in the 20th century. The interiors were gutted by fire in 1973, and the house remains a ruin. As of May 2009^[update], plans exist to partially restore the building, and manage the estate as a community asset.

Sir John Clerk's father, the first Baronet of Penicuik, planned a house on the Mavisbank estate in the late 17th century, for which a drawing of 1698 survives. Sir John Clerk, 2nd Baronet (1676–1755) was a Member of the Parliament of Scotland, and, after the union of 1707, of the Parliament of Great Britain. He was also an artistic patron, a composer of music, and an amateur architect. In 1722, he inherited his father's estates, and began planning the new house. Around this time, William Adam was engaged on his first major commission, the remodelling of Hopetoun House for the Earl of Hopetoun. Clerk and Adam collaborated on the design of Mavisbank, which was based on the 1698 proposal. Each claimed the greater part of the credit for the design. Clerk wrote in a letter that he designed the house "under the correction of Mr Adam, a talented architect", while Adam credited the design to himself in his book, Vitruvius Scoticus. It is clear that Adam enjoyed an unusually close relationship with his client, despite their differences of opinion. Clerk certainly criticised some of Adam's suggestions, although surviving correspondence suggests Adam got his way on a number of points. The foundations were laid in 1723, with construction entrusted to the mason and contractor John Baxter Senior, with stone carved by William Sylverstyne. However, William Adam himself was later appointed to complete the works.

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