Cherie's Place – Thought for the Week

Stop Learning.
Start Knowing.
The rose opens
And opens
And when it falls
Falls outward

Rumi

Cherie's Place – Thought for the Week

But pleasures are like poppies spread,
You seize the flower, it’s bloom is shed;
Or, like the snow-fall in the river,
A moment white, then melts forever.

Robert Burns

Invasion & Eviction

Sheep May Safely Graze

Sheep may safely graze and pasture
In a watchful Shepherd’s sight.
Those who rule with wisdom guiding
Bring to hearts a peace abiding
Bless a land with joy made bright.

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Hidcote

Hidcote was aquired by the National Trust in 1948, when Lawrence Waterbury Johnston, who made the garden the garden at Hidcote departed permanently for his garden in France.

It was an important acquisition, important not only because of its quality, but because it was the first property that the Trust acquired specifically on account of its garden. Here the Trust learned to garden.*

Hidcote is an Arts and Crafts garden in the north Cotswolds, a stone’s throw from Stratford-upon-Avon. Created by the talented American horticulturist, Major Lawrence Johnston its colourful and intricately designed outdoor ‘rooms’ are always full of surprises. It’s a must-see if you’re on holiday in the Cotswolds.

Explore the maze of narrow paved pathways and discover secret gardens, magnificent vistas and plants that burst with colour. Many of the plants found growing in the garden were collected from Johnston’s many plant hunting trips to far away places. It’s the perfect place if you’re in need of gardening inspiration.

Find a quiet spot and sit on one of the ornate benches and watch green woodpeckers search for their lunch or listen to the calls from the buzzards circling overhead. Time it right and you might catch a glimpse of the elusive hummingbird moth.

Meander through the intricate gardens and into the Wilderness. This secluded stretch of tall trees is just right for a picnic. Take a glimpse beyond the boundary and see the garden blend effortlessly into the countryside beyond.

The Monarch’s Way path runs close-by. Follow it for a brief time from the car park and into the chocolate-box Cotswold hamlet of Hidcote Bartrim. You’ll be treated to traditionally thatched stone cottages that were once home to Johnston’s gardeners. They’re now owned by the Trust and rented out.

*From the Hidcot Manor Garden National Trust Handbook

Hinton Ampner – All Saints Church

The church of ALL SAINTS has suffered from ‘restoration’ more severely than many of its neighbours, (fn. 14) but is still of great interest as preserving its pre-Conquest plan and a few details of that date. It has a chancel 15 ft. 8 in. wide by 21 ft. long, and a nave 21 ft. 10 in. wide by 47 ft. with walls 2 ft. 6 in. thick of flint rubble with ashlar dressings.

There are three bells, the treble inscribed: ‘Serv God I W 1603.,’ the second ‘Fere God I W, 1603.,’ and tenor ‘In God is my hope, 1610.’ The latter is by the unidentified founder I.H. (possibly John Higden), the other two by John Wallis of Salisbury.

Hinton Ampner

When we visited Hinton Ampner the first floor of the property was closed due to storm damage to the roof on February 2014. This was more than made up for by the gardens, the orchard and the parish church of All Saints.

A restored eighteenth century house with a twentieth century garden. The garden was made by Ralph Dutton (Lord Sherbourne), who wrote a book on Hinton Ampner: A Hampshire Manor (Batsford, 1968). He also wrote a history of the English Garden (1937). Mea Allen described its ‘one of Britain’s great gardens to be seen if you can. A classical beauty of layout and ornament’. Ownership then passed to the National Trust. The garden has walks and terraces with hedges, topiary, ornaments and excellent planting. Dutton explained that ‘my interest lies more in shrubs than in flowers’ what above all I want from a garden is tranquility’.

Archaeologists Uncover 6,000 Year Old Encampment Near Stonehenge

In September 2014 archaeologists discovered an encampment  about 1.5  miles away from Stonehenge. Using carbon dating it has taken until now to be able to determine the age of the encampment to be around 6,000 years old.

Canada Now reports:

The site of the encampment has been named Blick Mead and it is about 1.5 miles from the Stonehenge monument. Archaeologists tested charcoal remains at the Blick Mead site and carbon dating determined that these charcoal remains date from around 4,000 B.C which is hundreds and possibly even a thousand years before Stonehenge was constructed.

Archaeologists also uncovered a number of other remains and artifacts that point to a settlement or encampment being present in the area around Stonehenge. Archaeologists have uncovered the remains of large cattle called Aurochs, the ancestors of our modern cows and bulls that were eaten by early hunter gatherers at Blick Mead. In addition to cattle remains archaeologists have found burnt flints used to start fires for cooking and warmth and other tools such as primitive knives. The newly discovered Blick Mead site probably attracted early hunter gatherers in Britain because of a natural spring in the area providing a steady source of fresh water for both humans and animals and rare algae that has changed the color of native rocks from brown to pink. No doubt this area would have been an excellent place to have a settlement or encampment.

Historians and anthropologists believe that artifacts and structures from the Blick Mead site could shed light onto the pre-history of Stonehenge and its inhabitants which has long remained a mystery. There are still buildings that need to be studied such as a 33 meter long wooden structure that was possibly used for ritual burials that was unearthed at the Blick Mead site this September.

Archaeologists and historians are concerned for the future of the site due to a plan to build a tunnel beneath the Stonehenge landscape in order to divert traffic from the nearby A303. The Department of Transport have said the will consult with experts to ensure the planned tunnel project does not disturb historical and cultural areas and artifacts.

Cherie's Place – Thought for the Week

Inspiration will always sing; inspiration will never explain.

Kahlil Gibran

Christmas Through the Ages

In the busy run up to Christmas I was able to find a brief time slot that allowed me to visit Attingham Park for lunch and to see the house decked out for Christmas through the ages. Each room had a different feel and different styles of Christmas decorations and trees.

As in previous years one of the trees was for ‘wishes’. On a table near to the tree there were pieces of paper intended for people to write their own seasonal wishes. After writing down a wish the piece of paper was folded up into an origami shape and added to the tree. Due to my visit being just a few days before Christmas the tree was overflowing with wishes.  It was lovely to see children queuing around the table eager to write and add their wishes to the tree.

During my visit to Attingham I was able to find out the latest progress on the picture gallery roof restoration project. During this project most of the pictures that normally hang in the picture gallery have been removed for storage while the work is undertaken. A few pictures have been placed at ground level next to the scaffolding for closer inspection.

One of the paintings is of Queen Charlotte wife of George III. We were told by one of the room guides that the painting had attracted a lot of attention from art experts due to Charlotte appearing to age with her hair changing colour when the painting was viewed from different angles. Some of the art experts thought the artist had deliberately painted her that way. Now that the painting is at ground level it can be seen that no special technique had been used and the effect was just a trick of light due to where the painting had been placed on the wall.