Follies · Central Scotland
The Dunmore Pineapple
An 18th-century garden folly topped with a giant stone pineapple — Scotland's strangest building.
James Allan — CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 20 min–45 min
- Free entry
- Dog-friendly
About
The Dunmore Pineapple is the 18th-century garden folly at Dunmore Park near Airth in Stirlingshire, built by John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore around 1761 as a summerhouse and gardener's retreat. The two-storey structure is topped with an enormous stone pineapple — 14 metres tall, with each leaf carved separately and self-draining to prevent winter frost damage — almost certainly the most extraordinary garden building in Scotland. Owned by the National Trust for Scotland and rented out by the Landmark Trust as a holiday let; the surrounding walled garden is open free of charge.
Photo gallery
From the Wikipedia article
The Dunmore Pineapple is a folly in Dunmore Park, near Airth in Stirlingshire, Scotland. In 1995, it was ranked "as the most bizarre building in Scotland".
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
Architecture
A building containing a hothouse was built into this wall in 1761 by John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore. The hothouse, which was located in the ground floor of the building, was used, among other things, for growing pineapples. The south ground floor, which is now covered in stucco and largely overgrown with vines, was originally covered with glass windowpanes. Additional heat was provided by a furnace-driven heating system that circulated hot air through cavities in the wall construction of the adjoining hothouse buildings. The smoke from the furnace was expelled through four chimneys, cleverly disguised as Grecian urns. The upper floor, which is at ground level when approached from the…
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 56.0764, -3.7686
- District
- Falkirk
- Postcode
- FK2 8RB
- Parliamentary constituency
- Alloa and Grangemouth
Sources
- manual: dunmore-pineapple (manual)
- wikipedia: Dunmore Pineapple (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is The Dunmore Pineapple?
- The Dunmore Pineapple is in central Scotland, United Kingdom (postcode FK2 8RB).
- When was The Dunmore Pineapple built?
- Dates from the Georgian period.
- Who owns The Dunmore Pineapple?
- The Dunmore Pineapple is owned by National Trust for Scotland.
- Is The Dunmore Pineapple a listed building?
- The Dunmore Pineapple is officially recognised as Category A listed.
- Is The Dunmore Pineapple free to visit?
- Yes, The Dunmore Pineapple is free to enter.
- How do I get to The Dunmore Pineapple?
- Drivers can navigate to postcode FK2 8RB. It sits within the Alloa and Grangemouth parliamentary constituency.