HUNTLY CASTLE 279 FOURTH PERIOD or outer side is a story lower than that within the courtyard on the north side. The basement floor (Fig. 734) contains three vaulted cellars, with a passage leading to them, and, in the south-west round tower, a vaulted prison. The small passage leading to the latter is considerably higher than the floor of the dungeon, into which a prisoner would have to descend by a ladder. The walls of this floor are no doubt a remnant of the old castle, burned down in 1594, and they may possibly be of a much older date. The form of the arches over the doors (see sketch, Fig. 734), and the recesses of the windows in the walls, which are 8 to 10 feet thick, indicate a considerably older date than that of the super- structure (Fig. 735). The floor above this, which enters on the level of the courtyard, is the proper ground floor. It is vaulted, and contains the kitchen in the centre, with a room on each side, and one in the round tower provided with fireplaces and garde-robes. HALL WITHDRAWING ROOM OVER FLOOR FIG. 736. Huntly Castle. Plan of First Floor. Assuming that the present building represents generally the plan of the older castle, the latter would probably have either a square or round tower at the north-east angle, corresponding to that at the south-west ; but in the rebuilding, in 1602, only a small round tower sufficient to con- tain the staircase has been erected, together with a thin wall outside the passage to fill up the gap where the larger tower stood. This arrange- ment now brings it into the category of the Z plans, although possibly the building may have originally formed part of a thirteenth-century castle, as above suggested. The first floor (Fig. 736) above this contains the great hall, entering from the main staircase. It is 37 feet long by 25 feet wide, with large windows on three sides. Adjoining it to the west
