The Shell House

The Shell House or Grotto is sited on the Newhailes Estate, Musselburgh.  Grottos were fashionable in the late 18th century and this one was commissioned by Lord Hailes in the 1780s.  It is currently roofless with one derelict wall.  The exterior is of sandstone rock - faced rubble walls but the interior walls were originally lined with decorative sea shell patterns of which only remnants remain in the surrounding woodland. The Newhailes Estate is under the care of the National Trust for Scotland