Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Croome Court: House, Park, And RAF Base

We over-nighted in a large lay-by northwest of Hereford, having decided to see three or four more of the National Trust sites nearby in Herefordshire and Shropshire. First, the next day, was Croome Court, the park for which was Culpability Brown's first commission, and which includes a Georgian hall and an historic WWII RAF base. Culpability had a hand in designing the hall but not the RAF base, although it is interesting to speculate how he might have handled the run-ways, revetments, control tower (a folly?), the anti-aircraft batteries, etc. The artificial hill--a hazard to landing approaches--would have to be moved back into the artificial lake, at the very least, and the river re-diverted. In any case, I would conjecture that Croome, particularly the hall, is one of the Trust's biggest challenges. Its history is all over the place, no coherence nor connectedness, few artifacts remain of any part of it...just not much material for a historical narrative that doesn't appear, um, contrived. On the other hand, no one could contrive a history as bizarre as Croome's. Apart from architectural restoration, it is becoming a showplace for contemporary "art."
The small but excellent RAF museum
















The secret RAF Defford airbase in 1944
















Secret because it was where considerable R&D for airborne radar
was done, where radar was installed in night-fighters, etc., and
where crews, including many women, were trained in use of radar


















Thus




















And thus




















And thus




















Part of the grounds, including an obligatory folly
















The Church of St. Mary Magdalen...Culpability said it had to be a
real "eye-catcher"

















Burial items were brought in from the former non-eye-catching
parish church; apparently some of Croome's earlier residents
had been to Italy and seen the recumbent Etruscan tombs

















More grounds
















Former Jacobean court
















The new house, Croome Court
















The grounds, before...
















And, after...Culpability's plan
















The long hall...nothing in it except contemporary
"sculpture"





















Needs work
















Barbara, 6th Countess of Coventry; the Conventrys are still going
strong, but sold Croome in 1946; for 30 years it was a Catholic
boys' high school; then, the Catholics sold it to Hare Krishna (it
was their national headquarters); 5 years later the Hares sold it
to what became a succession of developers...one who wanted to
make it a conference center, one who wanted to make it a fine
restaurant, and one who lived in it, hoping to flip it back into
a grand home, and make millions; in 2007, it came to the National
Trust























Thus
















In what may have been the Georgian dining room; the painting
was actually done by the Hares!

















One of the developers had interesting ideas about decoration
















A flink on the grounds, just beyond the ha-ha ("hee-haw" to
Americans)

















Today's swans, approaching the Chinese Bridge on the re-directed
river, just before the obligatory artificial serpentine lake

















Although some of the views were great, not one of my favorite
sites



Sunday, May 29, 2016

Weir Garden, Herefordshire

It was to be a three-sight day--four if you count the ASDA--we drove next a few miles back across Hereford to Weir Garden, another National Trust site, an early 20th century landscape garden, and walled garden, on the River Wye.
Thus
















Vicki stands for scale by one of the big trees
















Part of the largest flock of swans we've seen
















Thus
















But a scout returns from around the bend: nothing up-river
















And so they all turn back
















Along the river
















Bottom, right middle, stone remains of a Roman villa
















Fruit trees along the car park
















Grounds...beautiful Herefordshire

Wildflowers

In the walled garden, one of the better ones yet

In the green house...Venus Fly Traps for sale... we would have
bought one, but it's still two months until P arrives

Pitcher plants, also very hard on flies

Chives, anyone?

And, a patch for the kiddies; neat place

Return To Kilpeck, 2

Pix of the parish Church of St. Mary and St. David continue...
In 2009, I was so taken with the corbels, I didn't
much look at the one door (on the south side; the
north side door and window were bricked up long
ago...the Devil lives in the north, one scholar
suggested; anyhow, click to enlarge...it is
rancid with symbolism, not all of it Christian

























Right column...Celtic knots, a serpent devouring
itself (regeneration), a green man...





















More snakes (Ourburos), etc.




















A Celtic dragon on one of the corners
















And now to the corbels...this one of only two or three I saw that
are overtly Christian

















Damaged, but possibly an Adam and Even and serpent friend
















Among the Celtic-looking stuff
















Origin of the "dog and bunny show" expression...always cracks
me up...until I remember it was created 850 years ago in a time
and place of civil war (King Stephen vs. Empress Matilda)


















Man playing a stringed instrument
















A  Sheelah-na-gig (look it up), Celtic fertility symbol
















I originally thought this pair were lovers, but now read they are
wrestlers in an identifiable Celtic hold

















Man wrestling a greased pig...an Olympic sport in Texas
















Contortionist?
















Anteater eating...?






















































There are, of course, dozens more, of which I now have copies. Duplicates of those previously posted are for clarification only; plus, I just like them. Most, if not all, are on Google Images.