Grotto On North Side Of Reservoir

The Grotto on the North Side of the Reservoir is a small artificial cave in the Studley Royal park, in the parish of Lindrick with Studley Royal and Fountains, North Yorkshire. Historic England protects it as a Grade II listed structure (list entry 1150616, designated 1986). It sits inside the celebrated water garden that, together with the ruins of Fountains Abbey, forms a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

What is this structure?

A modest garden feature dating from about 1730. According to the listing, Robert Doe built it for John Aislabie, the estate owner who laid out the water garden between 1718 and 1730. The grotto is a hand-made chamber roughly 3 m wide and 2 m long, with a ceiling about 2 m high at the centre. A barrel vault covers the interior, and a narrow arched doorway made of large tufa blocks leads in.

What is it made of?

Builders used tufa and rough limestone, and part of the chamber is cut straight into the rock. The raw, rustic look was deliberate: in eighteenth-century landscape gardens, grottoes were meant to read as natural hideaways. The official listing groups it stylistically with the tunnel beneath the Octagon Tower and the Rustic Bridge, other tufa elements of the same scheme.

Which reservoir does the name refer to?

The reservoir below Tent Hill, also from around 1730 and also listed. It holds the water that feeds the ornamental ponds further down the garden: the Canal, Moon, Crescent and Half Moon ponds. Tent Hill served as a backdrop to the gardens and was originally crowned by the Temple of Venus. The grotto belongs to this working water infrastructure rather than to the main fountain-and-canal vista.

Where is it and how do you find it?

The coordinates are about 54.1127 N, 1.5718 W, in the northern part of Studley Royal. The easiest approach is to combine it with a visit to Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, near the town of Ripon. The Vyner family sold the estate in 1966 to West Riding County Council, and the National Trust now looks after it.

When should you go?

The grotto is small, so treat it as a stop on a longer walk through the park. Pick a dry day, when the paths around the reservoir are in good shape. Exploring the whole estate usually takes several hours.

Frequently asked questions

When was the grotto built? Around 1730, while John Aislabie was creating the Studley Royal water garden.

Who built it? The listing names Robert Doe, who worked for John Aislabie.

How big is the interior? Approximately 3 m wide, 2 m long and 2 m high at the middle.

Is it a protected monument? Yes. It is Grade II listed by Historic England, entry 1150616, designated in 1986.