IF YOU’VE EVER travelled the old main road between Galway and Dublin, you may have stopped in Horseleap, a village on the Westmeath/Offaly border.
The town is said to have gotten its English name from a legend dating back to 1192, when a member of the De Lacy family was forced to flee from the Mac Geoghegans. On arrival at his castle, he found the drawbridge raised, so he had to jump the moat on horseback. The village is now home to a truly apt feature – a commanding 12 ft bronze statue of a horse on its hind legs.
A number of more modern urban legends are attached to this statue, one being that it was commissioned in Italy in 1999 by Ferrari as a gift for Eddie Irvine. (Journalist Joe Saward has pointed out that Ferrari denies any connection to it.)
Either way, walking distance from this little bit of pub quiz trivia is Ardnurcher Glebe, a sprawling five-bed home that sits on about 1.6 acres. It’s now on the market for €699,000.
The entrance hall is a pristine space with a polished tiled floor that contrasts with the teal-painted wall and elegant staircase that leads to the first floor and gallery-style landing. To the left is a sitting room, and to the right is the light-filled kitchen and dining room.
The cream tones from the hallway carry on into this social space that benefits from a dual aspect and comes complete with high quality appliances like a Range Master and granite work surfaces.
Off the kitchen sits a generously-sized utility room with plenty of storage ideal for a pantry as well as laundry.
The dining space is a large section of the open plan that can seat up to eight people comfortably. Off the kitchen and dining space is another family room that has a patio door to the back garden.
There are two lounges. The larger of the two is southwest facing and gets a lot of light. The real feature in this room is the fireplace that’s home to a solid fuel stove, a black granite mantlepiece and a Clonaslee stone surround to match the exterior of this home.
One of the bedrooms of this 389 m² home is located on the ground floor. Although it’s not en suite, there is a bathroom right beside it.
Upstairs, there is another large bedroom that has the luxury of a fully fitted walk-in wardrobe and en suite bathroom. There are three more roomy bedrooms that all share the main bathroom on this floor.
While the location is quite remote, Tullamore, Athlone, Mullingar, Galway and Dublin are all manageable drives away – and whoever buys this house will certainly have a safe place to keep their car. To the side of this huge house is a fully insulated and detached two storey garage, which could almost be a comfortable home in itself.
Ardnurcher Glebe, Horseleap, Kilbeggan, Co Westmeath is on the market for €699,000 through Sherry Fitzgerald| Lewis Hamil.
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