322 



GATES AND SCREENS 



court was generally obtained through a gate-house, and Eliza- 

 bethan and Jacobean houses have innumerable examples of 

 these charming buildings. In the smaller houses an archway 

 replaced the gate-house, and in course of time the archway gave 

 place to gate-piers. But through all the changes, the desire to- 

 give emphasis to the entrance remained, and every house with 

 architectural pretensions had gate-piers more or less handsome. 

 At Canons Ashby, in Northamptonshire, there are several good 

 types (Fig. 238) ; those between the green court and the park 



FIG. 239. Wooden Gates, Canons Ashby. 



have a Jacobean flavour about them, while those at the 

 bottom of the garden are surmounted by the family crest in 

 the shape of a demi-lion holding a sphere. The gates which 

 formerly hung between these piers (Fig. 239) are probably the 

 earliest example of garden gates in wood which survive, but they 

 are so unconstructional in design that they threatened to fall to 

 pieces, and were replaced by something plainer, but more con- 

 venient. Among the drawings by Jones and Webb are many of 

 gateways, some rich in appearance, and some quite plain. The 

 finest which remains is the well-known York water-gate at the 

 foot of Buckingham Street (Fig. 35). There are some careful 



