Northern Ireland has a number of National Trust sites, and we wanted to see at least Springhill, Mt. Stewart, and Castle Ward, all quite comparable to Trust sites we have seen in England and Wales. Springhill is a late 17th century manor house, part of the Ulster Plantation, and in the hands of the Conygham and Lenox families from that time until 1957. Amazingly, the contents of the house are all original and contain some real treasures. And no, we did not see the ghost, although the guide, a particularly good one, certainly set the story well.
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| Springhill House |
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Knife and gun club, including some used to put down various
Irish rebellions; the blunderbuss, we learned, is actually
a ladies' weapon (don't have to be a good shot; to be fired from
the hip) |
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Knife and gun club, part two: a Kentucky rifle and a long rifle,
1680, used in defense of Derry |
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Extremely rare: death warrant for Charles I; Cromwell's signature is third down on
the left; it was death to own a copy in the Restoration; this is one of only a few
known surviving copies |
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Library, 3,000 books, largest private collection of 16th-17th in Ireland; original
edition of Hobbes' Leviathan, others |
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| Traveling chest |
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| Sitting room |
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| Very old Steiff bear |
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| Cane given by George III to a lady of the family after she had lost her leg |
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| Black Wedgewood |
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| Faux bread molds (it's a long story) |
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| Grave marker from WWI France |
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| Interesting antiques everywhere |
1 comment:
Amazing artifacts!
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