a general miscellany
Kilpeck replica on my patio Sheela-na-gig: A stone carving of a woman with exposed and/or exaggerated genitalia, usually found on religious buildings (www.sheelanagig.org). Usually referred to as a sheela-na-gig, sheela, sile, or any number of names the sheela appears on numerous churches throughout the British Isles. As there is no consensus on her name neither is … Continue reading Sheelas in Yorkshire
It is some time since I last posted here so I thought I'd write a short item. I have to state from the outset that I have never visited this church and it was only recently I discovered it even existed. As we are now in lockdown again I have had to postpone plans to … Continue reading The Valley Church
The North York Moors are littered with stones, some of them naturally occurring and others that have been moved and shaped by human hand for one purpose or another. Often they may have been repurposed making it difficult to be sure of their original use and even location. In this post I intend to look … Continue reading Standing Stones on the Moors
Throughout these lands there are many points where water comes to the surface. In times past these would have been the only sources of fresh water and often meant a walk of some distance to resupply a household. As time went on some of these springs and wells took on a mysticism and a reputation … Continue reading Springs & Wells – Holy & Otherwise
In this post I thought I would look at the less dramatic subject of cross bases, many of which are never seen. Last time I briefly mentioned Redman Cross which exists only as a base and may not be in its original position, in this post we will see a few more. The first we … Continue reading Moorland Crosses 3
In my first blog on moorland crosses I mentioned the damage done to Young Ralph and the need for it to be repaired. I'd like to start this post with a similar tale. I first went to find Ainhowe or Ana Cross in 1997. It stands on Spaunton Moor not far from the top of … Continue reading Moorland Crosses 2
Firstly, apologies for the long hiatus between posts. There are many reasons, not all valid. I have long been interested in the wayside crosses of the North York Moors and their environs. I found them fascinating even before I came to live in this area and over the years have driven and walked through many … Continue reading Moorland Crosses 1
For over 200 years, Norwich’s pleasure gardens provided public recreation, from bowls and leisurely walks in the C17th to Pablo Fanque’s Fair in the C19th.
Pablo Fanque and steed from The Illustrated London News
I ended the previous post with a passing mention of My Lord’s Gardens, a relic of the Dukes of Norfolk. Here it is, on Samuel King’s map of 1776, some 100 years after the gardener and diarist John Evelyn designed it for Henry Howard who – now that the dukedom had been restored by Charles II – was keen to re-establish his family’s presence in Norwich. This was to be the first of several pleasure gardens in Norwich.
Between King Street and the bend in the river opposite the modern-day railway station were My Lord’s Gardens (outlined in red, the name underlined in green) and Spring Gardens (blue). From, A New Plan of the City of…
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A pillow mound on Levisham moor The Normans introduced rabbits into England; or was it the Romans? No-one is really sure, it is usually attributed to the Normans and I’m fairly certain they brought rabbits in quite large numbers but were there some already here? Until quite recently the Normans were accorded the somewhat dubious … Continue reading Pillow Mounds
It has been some time since I last posted anything, mainly due to holidays but also because I wanted to gather as much information as possible about this topic. As with most towns Pickering used to have a workhouse and although there is no evidence of it left today I thought it would be interesting to … Continue reading The Workhouse
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