A rare surviving example of a post plantation cruck frame cottage is Hazlett House near Castlerock in the north of County Derry.

It’s frame consists of a series of bog oak beams which spring from the ground and lean inwards to support the roof.

Maps suggest that planter houses were built using Irish techniques and possibly Irish labour – but few survive. This cottage now belongs to the National Trust.

The beams are secured at the top to make an ‘A’ frame held together by wooden pegs.   The timbers in Hazlett House are carbon dated to 1691.

The upstairs consists of private bedrooms as well as a long dormitory for communal sleeping.

The stairs are sweetly boxed with a door for draughts and noise.

Basalt dominates the area and buildings tend to be a mish-mash of basalt, brick and rubble.

Skillfully cut yet insisting towards its own natural hexagonal form.

The house is a small museum full of typical household items and well worth a visit.