A timber-framed, eight-sided market hall that Dunster built in 1609 for its wool and cloth trade, at the heart of the village high street
Open accessfree to visit at any reasonable time
Eight sides and a steep, gabled roof mark out this timber market hall in the middle of Dunster, put up in 1609 for the wool and cloth trade that once drove the town’s economy. Dunster’s Luttrell family, lords of the manor, paid for it so traders had shelter from the rain and somewhere safer to lay out their goods. A stone pillar in the centre supports the timber frame, and the roof’s gables and dormer windows let light into the space below, with the eaves projecting out far enough to keep shoppers dry while they browsed the goods. Look closely at the roof beams and you can still see a hole that, by local tradition, dates from cannon fire during the Civil War siege of nearby Dunster Castle, after which the building was repaired in 1647. A few minutes’ walk takes you to the older, more battered Dunster Butter Cross and to Gallox Bridge on the edge of the village.
