Timber-framed house of 15th century origin, largely re-built in the 17th century. It has 17th century flooring in the open hall and underwent alterations in the 18th and 20th centuries. The house has a timber frame which is encased in coursed limestone rubble with ashlar quoins and some brick dressings. The roof is of pantile and has two brick ridge stacks. The building is of two storeys with garret, and has an irregular six-bay front with off centre 20th century door. The front wall has some moulded stones re-used in the facade including some 13th century dogtooth moulding. An exposed length of timber may be an original midrail. There is evidence of considerable patching of the front wall. At the rear a bay post is visible at first floor level. The interior has 3 inglenook fireplaces, one with a moulded bressummer. The principal girders in the hall and parlour are deeply moulded with attenuated triangular stops; the door frame between the rooms has similar stops and moulding. In the original kitchen is a 18th century panelled cupboard with semi-circular head and key block. On the first floor several bay posts are visible in the side walls with mortices and peg holes for vanished braces. The staircase has 17th century splat balusters of serpentine form. The oak roof is of double butt purlin construction. The medieval roof was originally of 9 bays, but the 3 bays over the kitchen chamber are 18th century replacements. The middle bays over the hall have heavy smoke blackening attesting the former existence of an open hall. The house is near the site of the Gilbertine monastery of Sixhills. For the full description and the legal address of this listed building please refer to the appropriate entry in the National Heritage List for England. {1}{2}{3} A programme of historic building recording was conducted at Lincoln Lane Farmhouse, also known as 'The Nunnery', Sixhills, as part of a joint research project by the Hainton Heritage Group and the Society for Lincolnshire History and Archaeology's Building Recording Group (RUBL). Although originally thought to be a largely late 17th century farmhouse, the investigation revealed that the building was instead a converted mid-16th century timber-framed hall house with reused 12th century timbers and limestone likely recovered from the nearby Sixhills Priory site (see MLI50258). Five main phases of building were identified at the farmhouse - these being: 1 - Initial Construction (c.1530/55). During this period, the building was an atypical ‘hall house’ in style, with two high status chambers at either end of the central hall. This is the first building in Lincolnshire to be confirmed to belong to this category. It is suggested to have been built at this time for James Wallis, the last prior of Sixhills Priory, and his sister Isobel. This would provide an explaination for the two separate living areas; it is assumed that the service areas were displaced to since-demolished outbuildings. 1b - Heating of the North parlour (c.1603/1625-1660?). A chimney was added to the south end of the North parlour to provide heating. 2a - Reconstruction Period 1 (c.1660-1692). The open hall was enclosed in this period, with a floor inserted at first floor. A kitchen and cellar were provided in the first outshot, and the timber frame was encased in the reused limestone rubble. Gables were also added to the previously hipped roof at this time, along with two new brick chimney stacks with stairs wrapping around. 2b - Reconstruction Period 2 (c.1692-1700). This period of reconstruction is defined by the conversion to a more modern ‘farmhouse’. Attic rooms were added by lowering the ceilings of first floor rooms, and the floor of the first floor southern chamber was reinforced, possibly to allow for the storage of farm goods such as wool. 3 - High status farmhouse period (c.1700-1871/81). Few changes were made during this period. 4 - Division into three cottages (1871/81-mid 20th century). The building was extended to the north and a second single storey extension added on the western elevation, with a brick fireplace and covered well pointing to its purpose as a kitchen. A third extension also appears to have been built around this time but was demolished prior to 1972, and its use remains unknown. 5 - Modern tenancy (Mid 20th century to date). Some modernisation of the fixtures and fittings, but no structural changes. {4}{5} As part of the previous project, dendrochronological analysis of a group of 20 timbers used as first floor joists in the farmhouse was conducted. The timbers were found to date to the mid-12th century and to have been cut from the heartwood of mature, straight-grown trees. The carefully prepared faces suggest that the timbers were intended to be seen, almost certainly in a high-status building. Their exact original use is, however, uncertain. {6} Also as part of the previous project, X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analysis was also undertaken on the reused joists, to determine whether they were (as previously suggested) originally cut as sarking boards used in the roof of the Priory building. The analysis found no evidence to support this hypothesis. {7}