King discusses the design among Adam's thatched and timber buildings as a rare mixture of classical and thatched styles, comparable to the house designed for General the Hon. William Hervey (SM Adam volume 43/21-23), but with the added anomaly of castle-style elements as well. Such idiosyncrasy can be understood as part of the dual role the cottage performs, as both estate building and picturesque park ornament, like the keeper's lodge designed as a triumphal arch and drawn on the same day (Adam volume 49/62).