tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80448436492341437872024-03-09T10:18:58.669+00:00sconzaniSprinklings of history, a smidgen of genealogy, a dash of art & a dusting of architecture, all mixed together with my eccentric fascinationssconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.comBlogger587125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-3436814553678808852023-07-13T17:00:00.001+01:002023-07-13T17:00:00.140+01:00Post Office: Cogan<p>This building is a mystery. It stands on
the corner of Windsor Road and Pill Street in Cogan, near Penarth, south Wales
and, though it is now private accommodation, at first glance, you might well
assume that the building once housed the local post office.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6PVOit1BbkrZcW5JQtgmCJrkU5SdLMYYp1BeDVdvtftFTqBiqrmQ3HP6JjTleRtgIk56K0Mskw1jZRPQAgaYirRcuVKwKy6-ZlpDniUOm6WcF2PpfF0x92y7Hmn4GZ0Auh_nf62CrE5j7q293RMPfVeWgJ15me8I7ldxoUBPD8GDeBgNJEytfsXgYrhJW/s3874/230713%20cogan%20post%20office%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2583" data-original-width="3874" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6PVOit1BbkrZcW5JQtgmCJrkU5SdLMYYp1BeDVdvtftFTqBiqrmQ3HP6JjTleRtgIk56K0Mskw1jZRPQAgaYirRcuVKwKy6-ZlpDniUOm6WcF2PpfF0x92y7Hmn4GZ0Auh_nf62CrE5j7q293RMPfVeWgJ15me8I7ldxoUBPD8GDeBgNJEytfsXgYrhJW/w640-h426/230713%20cogan%20post%20office%20(1).jpg" width="640" /></a><br /><br />The corners of the rectangular addition to
the building, on the side facing Windsor Road, are each adorned with impressively
decorated stone half-pillars, and, in a peculiar position, down at pavement
level, there's a semi-circular-shaped stone with the carved inscription 'Post
Office 1881'.</o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPjhUl8j9_nO7tRPx9D09VAK4eyu4aggOMVHHjOaRW4P5mDXSa9OMm4uShGUwHCdlwt1J2raKJV_aDUCDfc6wpEXIKJeUpJDF6GQuPrSS1pGHMJDvxXRd9NWAC7jslWQGdS8ro1vAC_Y3AJP75kd2FutTopy1PF7znQxTWGc18agKdVnf5s9nGQiBw9HaB/s5088/230713%20cogan%20post%20office%20(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2998" data-original-width="5088" height="378" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPjhUl8j9_nO7tRPx9D09VAK4eyu4aggOMVHHjOaRW4P5mDXSa9OMm4uShGUwHCdlwt1J2raKJV_aDUCDfc6wpEXIKJeUpJDF6GQuPrSS1pGHMJDvxXRd9NWAC7jslWQGdS8ro1vAC_Y3AJP75kd2FutTopy1PF7znQxTWGc18agKdVnf5s9nGQiBw9HaB/w640-h378/230713%20cogan%20post%20office%20(2).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">However, when I checked old maps of the
location on the National Library of Scotland website, in particular the '<a href="https://maps.nls.uk/view/102342664" target="_blank">Glamorgan Sheet XLVII</a>', where the area was surveyed between 1878 and 1879, and the map
was published in 1885, the post office in Cogan was located on Pill Street,
near the corner with Hewell Street, and there were no buildings at all along
Windsor Road. And, according to <a href="https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Cogan,_Vale_of_Glamorgan" target="_blank">further information</a> found online, the post
office in Cogan remained on Pill Street until it was closed in April 2008.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSc3pN88m3tcKVJWL0S2Cg-1TMBKhtrXc0_DIQx-MuZGoOZ0a0B_LrRgrnO67Dy4bnidCOQ4BQ6IYveT3PTjemCTUVEHD386GlFQqOuSH8PceSVVl_jjLCNxxErv0mFf1jwqZ-s9_UFbi1vCMQJwWnhLbNA54nQJx7L2S6kU-yvN7yt0Hgf0Qv9JVafhUN/s911/230713%20cogan%20post%20office%20(4).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="607" data-original-width="911" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSc3pN88m3tcKVJWL0S2Cg-1TMBKhtrXc0_DIQx-MuZGoOZ0a0B_LrRgrnO67Dy4bnidCOQ4BQ6IYveT3PTjemCTUVEHD386GlFQqOuSH8PceSVVl_jjLCNxxErv0mFf1jwqZ-s9_UFbi1vCMQJwWnhLbNA54nQJx7L2S6kU-yvN7yt0Hgf0Qv9JVafhUN/w640-h426/230713%20cogan%20post%20office%20(4).jpg" width="640" /></a><br /><br />By coincidence – or perhaps not? – a new
post office to serve Penarth was opened on Windsor Road in July 1881, the same
year as that shown on the Cogan stone inscription. The <i>Western Mail</i>, of 14 July 1881, reported as follows:</o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">PENARTH. OPENING
OF A NEW POST-OFFICE. – The post-office at Penarth has been removed to Windsor-road,
where Mr. E. W. Jones commenced his duties as postmaster on Tuesday. The
premises have been fitted in a much more convenient manner than the old office,
and the public generally fully appreciate the increased postal facilities given
them.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I wondered if perhaps the stonework on the
Cogan building had come from the 1881 Penarth post office building (that post
office was also closed and relocated in 2008). However, I found a photograph of
the former Penarth post office on the <a href="https://www.peoplescollection.wales/items/1319121" target="_blank">Peoples Collection Wales website</a>, and
that building does not have the same stonework.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3LmUlqzZ8Td9_ieHyVhGmmo-hoiaGK-sEBRJTjpxYrcE430b_CGArWX1twQxs1aVehG3oU8XbZRp2WXF4wZYXaDyUBfN8JGTQzUJ8YmDnMJXmZbtUIR9vXoPhh8Y1HMDMLoWQskpCBwuNxszwMC0kYJkrrUFWnwD0BiOasm8e1FdTqL4eh7btG6Ea49hJ/s3448/230713%20cogan%20post%20office%20(3).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2299" data-original-width="3448" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3LmUlqzZ8Td9_ieHyVhGmmo-hoiaGK-sEBRJTjpxYrcE430b_CGArWX1twQxs1aVehG3oU8XbZRp2WXF4wZYXaDyUBfN8JGTQzUJ8YmDnMJXmZbtUIR9vXoPhh8Y1HMDMLoWQskpCBwuNxszwMC0kYJkrrUFWnwD0BiOasm8e1FdTqL4eh7btG6Ea49hJ/w640-h426/230713%20cogan%20post%20office%20(3).jpg" width="640" /></a><br /><br />So, as I wrote at the beginning of this
post, the building is a mystery. If I manage to solve this mystery at some
future date, I will update this post.</o:p></span></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-39898664498358120082023-07-09T17:00:00.001+01:002023-07-09T17:00:00.137+01:00Dinas Powys: stink pipes<p>When I first noticed them, I wasn't sure
what these pipes were but the proximity of one of them to a present day utility
cover in the pavement was a clue.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBJx7S-_HaeXwu3qVhTHYJOimBIPOyxyZLhb5Lm1ppcLsxJDwPuHNCoWwdRjxS87aIS2hZaKsS3ADFTXaEhZjC9PmoFRTJJmCRFRPmasNQghwwdz5r80JOyV2MqPBId5jVLRn1g5NK1tLOmyweSaW5LoObwDF9VqGEJusKCsrXHKp2ZXyRGE0vnINGfM-u/s2812/230709%20stink%20pipe%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1875" data-original-width="2812" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBJx7S-_HaeXwu3qVhTHYJOimBIPOyxyZLhb5Lm1ppcLsxJDwPuHNCoWwdRjxS87aIS2hZaKsS3ADFTXaEhZjC9PmoFRTJJmCRFRPmasNQghwwdz5r80JOyV2MqPBId5jVLRn1g5NK1tLOmyweSaW5LoObwDF9VqGEJusKCsrXHKp2ZXyRGE0vnINGfM-u/w640-h426/230709%20stink%20pipe%20(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">These are stink pipes, also known as stench
pipes, once used to allow gases and noxious smells to escape safely from the
sewer pipes below the ground. From what I've been reading, pipes like these were
first introduced during the Victorian era. An article on the <a href="https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/Stink_pipes" target="_blank">Designing Buildings website</a> explains</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">The summer of
1858 was known as 'the Great Stink' in London as there was a strong smell of
untreated waste throughout the city, affecting those at work in the House of
Commons. Joseph Bazalgetter, the chief engineer of London's Metropolitan Board
of Works, proposed channelling waste through street sewers, into main
intercepting sewers. These would transport waste towards the tidal part of the
Thames so that it would be swept out to sea.<br />
The network of wide sewer tunnels required venting, which is why stink pipes
were incorporated into the system. Based on the concept of a blastpipe – an idea
allegedly invented by a Victorian-era surgeon, chemist and engineer named Sir
Goldsworthy Gurney – stink pipes were made out of cast iron and placed along
main sewer routes.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Many stink pipes were much taller than
those I've found, the better to catch any breeze and dissipate the noxious
smells away from people at ground level. The <a href="https://historicengland.org.uk/whats-new/in-your-area/midlands/shropshire-stink-pipe/" target="_blank">Historic England website</a> reports
on one, in the town of Shifnal in Shropshire, that has been grade II listed due
its height.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3QZpNLffYckzHddHNi0LolsV4Z115U227W3XdK33EO7gwC22mO7MzY3YIBVPvSIiPQdPr6JDyrgchdcxMMaJRHlMS8FboLp8E3qyySHPSsMX4Wlc4_TPZlwIUdoLPvtCJh1T5u7MpTOW9558MM4ShCLU271erzOnS3NZlj2BCB01km9lOHOwucNbhvXls/s4584/230709%20stink%20pipe%20(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3366" data-original-width="4584" height="470" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3QZpNLffYckzHddHNi0LolsV4Z115U227W3XdK33EO7gwC22mO7MzY3YIBVPvSIiPQdPr6JDyrgchdcxMMaJRHlMS8FboLp8E3qyySHPSsMX4Wlc4_TPZlwIUdoLPvtCJh1T5u7MpTOW9558MM4ShCLU271erzOnS3NZlj2BCB01km9lOHOwucNbhvXls/w640-h470/230709%20stink%20pipe%20(2).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I imagine those much taller structures were
the types built to release the city smells emanating from London's large sewer system,
whereas the shorter pipes were more appropriate in a suburban or small town
setting like Dinas Powys. Also, these local pipes are most probably Edwardian
rather than Victorian, as the road and houses where they're located were built
some time between 1901 and 1910, according to old maps of the area.</span></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-23004777704367854342023-06-30T17:00:00.004+01:002023-06-30T17:00:00.142+01:00Bandstand: Victoria Park, Barry<p>My previous blog post focused on the bandstand
on Barry Island; this post covers the bandstand in Victoria Park, Cadoxton, as
well as reporting on one further bandstand, in Barry's Romilly Park, which,
sadly, no longer survives.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I'm not sure when the idea of a bandstand
in Victoria Park was first mooted but, in the <i>Barry Dock News</i>'s 2 April 1909 report on the monthly meetings of
the various council committees, it was announced that a tender of £247 17s. had been accepted from Mr H.
Fisher for the bandstand's construction. And, in a few short months, building
was well underway: the <i>Barry Herald</i>, of
23 July 1909, included information about Victoria Park in an article about
newly opened bowling greens:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">Victoria Park,
Cadoxton, about six acres, is on a lofty eminence, commanding a wide sweep of
the Bristol Channel, and is one of the breeziest spots in the district,
Originally, it was common land, but it is now enclosed with wall and railings,
and is being laid out with paths, gardens, and bandstand....</span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitSzf_n8w5NOWoIg57ms-IorLmc0F5SbwdgXIVUrAHk8P61tYSY5Rk5lglNrDRjFQJ5rvVmE5JM5RcGjuKJBl1EHxbMt9JyyYCIUgtTyn7rGT1VRgOh8Fh918d0VOld0Hg3gdixvguhQkFR9k3-wq6PEx7VnkZkysA5ZODwOGs7W9d1REc0E_AHdq9zRN0/s5184/230630%20Barry%20Victoria%20Park.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="5184" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitSzf_n8w5NOWoIg57ms-IorLmc0F5SbwdgXIVUrAHk8P61tYSY5Rk5lglNrDRjFQJ5rvVmE5JM5RcGjuKJBl1EHxbMt9JyyYCIUgtTyn7rGT1VRgOh8Fh918d0VOld0Hg3gdixvguhQkFR9k3-wq6PEx7VnkZkysA5ZODwOGs7W9d1REc0E_AHdq9zRN0/w640-h426/230630%20Barry%20Victoria%20Park.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p class="MsoNormal">Just over a century later, the bandstand
was receiving 'a renovation makeover'. The <i><a href="https://www.barryanddistrictnews.co.uk/news/14385956.iconic-bandstand-gets-a-summer-makeover/" target="_blank">Barry and District News</a></i> 26 March 2016 report explains what was happening, and
includes the unsurprising information that the current structure is not, in
fact, the original bandstand:</p>
<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Over the last few years the bandstand has
shown signs of water damage and some rot ... </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">
Local craftsmen and carpenters from Woodspec Joinery Specialists are currently
carrying out the repairs on the bandstand. This includes custom made stainless
covers and rain channels to help prevent leaking on the upper tier.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">
Larger drainage pipes and renovated gutters will ensure that water flows away
from the roof.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">
Cabinet Member for Visible and Leisure Services, Councillor Gwyn John, said:
“With the old ceiling removed and work well underway sealing the upper tier, we
are looking forward to seeing the finished result.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">
"Since the Bandstand was rebuilt in Victoria Park it has become a much
loved landmark, and stage for some superb events and music concerts. It’s the
centrepiece of the Cadstock Music Festival every year.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">
“This work will make sure that the bandstand will last for many years to come
and will be ready for upcoming events, including African drumming, 2 brass band
concerts, several fun-days and of course the Cadstock Festival.”</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">
The original Victoria Park bandstand was built in 1907 by Hill and Smith of
Brierley Hill, West Midlands [* incorrect – see below] and survived until the
early 1970s.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">
During restoration of Victoria Park in early 2005 the bandstand was rebuilt as
part of the Heritage Lottery funded reconstruction using the original plans, by
the Heritage Engineering Company of Glasgow.</span></p></blockquote>
<p class="MsoNormal">* The details about the original
bandstand's construction are incorrect, the result of some sloppy journalism by
the <i>Barry and District News</i> reporter.
They have confused Barry's Victoria Park with Victoria Park, in Denton, Greater
Manchester, which also has a very fine bandstand – see the History and Heritage
section on the <a href="https://www.tameside.gov.uk/parks/victoriapark/history.pdf" target="_blank">Tameside Metropolitan Borough website</a>.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGTys5MgM_HLkEz7Js_ut4uhyJqrBGmuvDS-SENOle-2fYn8ntmJS55vqoVE8ZZTvQakkLQqkDcazguik4wxSOn-iPYQbJRMWvypDLYB4POcjAj0vqJMZDW1pPHlXWWmd_BR_3WtzfqeP_1XwMV9lfhZyNZpjI_5sVWQKrvnU0FJHowbeTJ6fg9HR-8QtY/s2417/230630%20Barry%20Victoria%20Park%20(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1611" data-original-width="2417" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGTys5MgM_HLkEz7Js_ut4uhyJqrBGmuvDS-SENOle-2fYn8ntmJS55vqoVE8ZZTvQakkLQqkDcazguik4wxSOn-iPYQbJRMWvypDLYB4POcjAj0vqJMZDW1pPHlXWWmd_BR_3WtzfqeP_1XwMV9lfhZyNZpjI_5sVWQKrvnU0FJHowbeTJ6fg9HR-8QtY/w640-h426/230630%20Barry%20Victoria%20Park%20(2).jpg" width="640" /></a></b></div><b><br /><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></b><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-GB">Romilly
Park</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">There used to be one more bandstand in
Barry, in Romilly Park. In the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Barry Dock
News</i> of 2 April 1909, an article entitled 'Tenders for the parks' reports the
acceptance of a tender by Messrs W. Ruckley and Son, for the amount of £261 7s.
3d., for the construction of a bandstand in Romilly Park. The <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Barry Herald</i>, of 23 July 1909, mentioned
that the Romilly Park improvements, including the bandstand, were nearing
completion, and there is an article in the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Barry
Herald</i>, dated 19 August 1910, that describes an illuminated concert in
Romilly Park. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In a report on the <a href="https://coflein.gov.uk/media/16/312/cpg247.pdf" target="_blank">Coflein website</a>, the
bandstand is described as being 'a central focal point of the park' and,
further, 'From old photographs it appears to have been hexagonal, with a
two-tiered ogee roof'. In fact, the domed bandstand structure is clearly visible
in the centre of an undated postcard, the product of F. Frith & Co. Limited,
which has been uploaded to the <a href="https://www.peoplescollection.wales/items/839796" target="_blank">Peoples Collection Wales</a>, and can be seen in
several other photographs <a href="https://www.peoplescollection.wales/items/1774316" target="_blank">here</a>, <a href="https://www.peoplescollection.wales/items/1318761" target="_blank">here</a> and <a href="https://www.peoplescollection.wales/items/1318531" target="_blank">here</a>. To my eye, the structure looks
almost identical to the bandstand in Victoria Park. Sadly, the Romilly Park bandstand
has not survived – the Coflein report mentioned above says the bandstand was
removed some time after the Second World War.</p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-37084080405979837442023-06-28T17:00:00.005+01:002023-06-28T17:00:00.152+01:00Bandstand: Barry Island<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">There are two bandstands still standing in
the south Wales coastal town of Barry. This blog post covers the bandstand on
Barry Island; a further blog will cover the bandstand in Victoria Park,
Cadoxton.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The bandstand on Barry Island is an elegant
structure, though, as it does not appear on the schedule of British listed
buildings, I doubt very much that this is the same one mentioned in the <i>Evening Express</i>, of 5 June 1896, where
it was reported that 'Lord Windsor has kindly acceded to an application by the
Barry Chamber of Trade and Improvement Association for the erection of a
bandstand on Barry Island for the entertainment of the public'. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5GUptALz9pRkoSw2K513ulnE7mMFay505jOyKDMj354TigjfPPQXcYlLev4bYy43MfVCRuh4PEvacuRBmVBdwvTTp_wI8MCz6rKT8tFtFPVp4h7ItQ8evN9JsNK5x97MmchB8hbU0V8rdJQC90QmxOF3yTqVPDOtfZszlY8W4DXk9qJQJps_nZ7Bwtf0g/s4797/230628%20BarryIsland.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3198" data-original-width="4797" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5GUptALz9pRkoSw2K513ulnE7mMFay505jOyKDMj354TigjfPPQXcYlLev4bYy43MfVCRuh4PEvacuRBmVBdwvTTp_wI8MCz6rKT8tFtFPVp4h7ItQ8evN9JsNK5x97MmchB8hbU0V8rdJQC90QmxOF3yTqVPDOtfZszlY8W4DXk9qJQJps_nZ7Bwtf0g/w640-h426/230628%20BarryIsland.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Despite Lord Windsor's approval, it was
some years before improvements got under way. In an article entitled 'Beautifying
Barry', the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Evening Express</i>, of 4
September 1907, reported that a joint meeting of the public works and licensing
committees of the Barry District Council had been held</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">to consider the
report of Mr. W. T. Douglas, M.Inst.C.E., upon the proposed improvement of
Whitmore Bay, Barry Island, Pebble Beach, and Porthkerry Park. <br />
Mr. W. J. Williams pointed out that the scheme was estimated to cost over
£98,000, exclusive of the purchase of Porthkerry Park and land at the island.
He was in favour of leaving the island severely alone, except as to the
erection of a shelter and bandstand at a cost of £ 3,000. <br />
Mr. J. A. Manaton disagreed, contending that the large influx of visitors to
Barry Island warranted substantial improvements at Whitmore Bay.<br />
The committee recommended that the following works be carried out:- <br />
Sea wall and promenade 1,900ft. long at Barry Island £11,900 <br />
Seating accommodation £300 <br />
Seven shelters £2,310 <br />
Concrete stairs £130 <br />
Tar paving and railings for Friar's Point Gardens £2,900 <br />
Bandstand and drinking fountain £850 <br />
Six shelters and open seating in the East Gardens £530<br />
The proposal to erect a shelter to accommodate 6,000 people at a cost of
£16,800 was rejected, and a sub-committee appointed to further consider the
portion of the report relating to the Pebble Beach and Porthkerry Park and Bay.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Though I doubt the current Barry Island
bandstand is the same one mentioned in these old newspaper reports, I was very
pleased to learn that this bandstand is still very much in use, at least during
the summer. So, if you're in the local area, you can attend one, or more, of the
brass band concerts scheduled for the coming months: the <a href="https://lovethevale.wales/whatson/its-brassy-down-the-island/2023-07-02/" target="_blank">Love the Vale website</a>
has the details. Enjoy!</p><br /><p></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-28058847239212938072023-06-24T16:00:00.000+01:002023-06-24T16:00:00.140+01:00Parc Penallta : The Observatory<p> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3VzAWAC-RJqmukGHSktCZGCOYqNreTjo4MAw-akLonXeLUNFXlRGjwqyApTsIFwiOibwmoky4NZejm34cNzoArxxlIjOuimZUgnRYiFtm1ucqpNqQKBUr7TPVEBh5AUujS9HMfqDfJ1v4LGdgeyEldLDbzlOreWDrQs5dOvPVmXDvvWxqTGuuo67UNA/s4642/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(1).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2785" data-original-width="4642" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3VzAWAC-RJqmukGHSktCZGCOYqNreTjo4MAw-akLonXeLUNFXlRGjwqyApTsIFwiOibwmoky4NZejm34cNzoArxxlIjOuimZUgnRYiFtm1ucqpNqQKBUr7TPVEBh5AUujS9HMfqDfJ1v4LGdgeyEldLDbzlOreWDrQs5dOvPVmXDvvWxqTGuuo67UNA/w640-h384/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></p>The Observatory stands on the highest point
of Parc Penallta, a country park in the Welsh Valleys built on the spoil heap of
the former Penallta Colliery.<p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBHhO4yFGeYBnUtGBR7V1dpgt-8i6YApChSfhm52MLKNA3VXSnbAZSZa46NRu0Y-WmejpRzDCwOsXom7zirGqo0Mi8-GXHByqRotFqfnAX7263CM7v7uWx6c99a0FMHUVzaZICkWOv_ifGnTGnO9nMQNCAoz8L9LiEh9WFI33_w8U2vBHrmxCcmWLA7Q/s5174/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(2).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3104" data-original-width="5174" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBHhO4yFGeYBnUtGBR7V1dpgt-8i6YApChSfhm52MLKNA3VXSnbAZSZa46NRu0Y-WmejpRzDCwOsXom7zirGqo0Mi8-GXHByqRotFqfnAX7263CM7v7uWx6c99a0FMHUVzaZICkWOv_ifGnTGnO9nMQNCAoz8L9LiEh9WFI33_w8U2vBHrmxCcmWLA7Q/w640-h384/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(2).jpg" width="640" /></a><br /><br />Built in 2001, in a combination of Corten
steel and stainless steel, The Observatory measures 10 metres high and 25
metres in diameter.</o:p></span> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiTLnY6_LmgKiCuXHU3cqg7_2dN4J0s9FEcaNGz6VizqMbQRyMnRu30akbw3PtsOx9tRcc8Fs80lUxvy4L5F7qbjZnG49jp1gzH3dy2kpt0mXJAnBu_oEoSBqeyYOotBOw2VL7ZlCdgRbBs2e2860Fp48OmKUBVLW44Od47xzZxQFRkZBr1Qmq6jhEDg/s5054/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(7).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3032" data-original-width="5054" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiTLnY6_LmgKiCuXHU3cqg7_2dN4J0s9FEcaNGz6VizqMbQRyMnRu30akbw3PtsOx9tRcc8Fs80lUxvy4L5F7qbjZnG49jp1gzH3dy2kpt0mXJAnBu_oEoSBqeyYOotBOw2VL7ZlCdgRbBs2e2860Fp48OmKUBVLW44Od47xzZxQFRkZBr1Qmq6jhEDg/w640-h384/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(7).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The six supporting arms of the sculpture
are decorated with cut-out designs, created by the artist in collaboration with
the six surrounding communities of Nelson, Ystrad Mynach, Maesycwmmer, Hengoed,
Llanbradach, and Gelligaer. Each arm leads the eye in the direction of one of
these communities.</span> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSxHwLBh7Ub3lZ8p2G2HDzN5uusc7-L4sBuzm1jhK28M6NAKcrrCRNb9T5nwFljjar8wX2-mzPhVXppCE0pCpaqE-SQr5d7fQB7p_in8RhmhoNH-2I98yLV68o-o-ShkpG0BKR-TtyDJUo40eziisLZmkWb8l-3Ou2ZkGUNfu7OmSSslL_5VaSyUow1g/s5168/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(3).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3101" data-original-width="5168" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSxHwLBh7Ub3lZ8p2G2HDzN5uusc7-L4sBuzm1jhK28M6NAKcrrCRNb9T5nwFljjar8wX2-mzPhVXppCE0pCpaqE-SQr5d7fQB7p_in8RhmhoNH-2I98yLV68o-o-ShkpG0BKR-TtyDJUo40eziisLZmkWb8l-3Ou2ZkGUNfu7OmSSslL_5VaSyUow1g/w640-h384/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(3).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The designs incorporate images that reflect
the heritage and wildlife to be found in these six locations, as imagined by
children from the local schools. And there are convenient benches where
visitors can sit and enjoy the views, and refuel with sandwiches and a drink
before exploring the many features of the park that are visible from this high
point.</span> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7kw725MsXtUQaBrqV92_FKAeb-3jafh-glqmA3a-kynhIGmsQBleVTX2DcHIvBd-cDd2Vfp063nWYtdu8qAKcNX9CPE7hE4DC54Rqmyw_N8Cuo6-ATjo6w9P3xaedSu_lqMKULLI1DvfiTcUhiS3mp6WPploA03FKmnIIcbI0jwW10kbC_An5xddxHg/s5171/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(8).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3103" data-original-width="5171" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7kw725MsXtUQaBrqV92_FKAeb-3jafh-glqmA3a-kynhIGmsQBleVTX2DcHIvBd-cDd2Vfp063nWYtdu8qAKcNX9CPE7hE4DC54Rqmyw_N8Cuo6-ATjo6w9P3xaedSu_lqMKULLI1DvfiTcUhiS3mp6WPploA03FKmnIIcbI0jwW10kbC_An5xddxHg/w640-h384/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(8).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The creator of this eye-catching artwork
was Malcolm Robertson (b. 1951), an artist who, after graduating from the
Glasgow School of Art in 1974, has worked primarily as a sculptor but,
according to <a href="https://www.malcolmrobertson.com/about-3" target="_blank">his website</a>, also created 'artworks and murals within a social and
environmental context' and ran 'art festivals, youth training schemes and
graduate apprenticeships' while working as the Town Artist in the Scottish New
Town of Glenrothes.</span> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2xj8vm7X0AGa1H9vfslP4DcIJ6zQaaf9PeQx-Q7f3Y0Jw0ImY8KA8WbU_TU53lttez9JzPhpd1AZepN9x-O3uB6ioxglBCqXhQSxROvzD7GNcbTNc59j0Imdv-58FIsFdxwDmkR-9Ci3kfjLmIZIUJiZD3gKKbSsOjNUGfTZ9HpfQ6D_jAjFRZAh84g/s5100/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(4).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3060" data-original-width="5100" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2xj8vm7X0AGa1H9vfslP4DcIJ6zQaaf9PeQx-Q7f3Y0Jw0ImY8KA8WbU_TU53lttez9JzPhpd1AZepN9x-O3uB6ioxglBCqXhQSxROvzD7GNcbTNc59j0Imdv-58FIsFdxwDmkR-9Ci3kfjLmIZIUJiZD3gKKbSsOjNUGfTZ9HpfQ6D_jAjFRZAh84g/w640-h384/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(4).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Since establishing his own professional
practice in 1991, Robertson 'has successfully managed to create an extensive
and eclectic portfolio of site specific sculpture and artworks in a wide
variety of materials in the UK, Germany, India and the USA', many of which can
be seen on <a href="https://www.malcolmrobertson.com/" target="_blank">his website</a>.</span> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2iQJ2R5qBisFjdWQ_cLofPA0KN7Lwy8Pw7OVdmjLmAeyeI5z8lQpQVcWmHb3pvbUPkBQbr9-O-lek5gr2vQhrEe91VNL3TOem6QAjUuMd10Um2W5xfZCi0pOc3NKw3-4wHCxCEWRrskltzl9EC-jbcVf8ivzbwIyp3wzw5P20p0J0Z66BwW03THsRtw/s5175/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(9).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3105" data-original-width="5175" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2iQJ2R5qBisFjdWQ_cLofPA0KN7Lwy8Pw7OVdmjLmAeyeI5z8lQpQVcWmHb3pvbUPkBQbr9-O-lek5gr2vQhrEe91VNL3TOem6QAjUuMd10Um2W5xfZCi0pOc3NKw3-4wHCxCEWRrskltzl9EC-jbcVf8ivzbwIyp3wzw5P20p0J0Z66BwW03THsRtw/w640-h384/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(9).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I find the fact that his art is 'created in
response to people and places, is eclectic in character and sympathetic in
scale and context' very appealing, and I always make a point of walking up to
The Observatory when I visit Parc Penallta.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyRUBCoJ7eEgwI8o-RtSuepivAnHERJ8rTOA9YUEU7dAorbarOTU1_dPjyFXmtiLiMXNreqoVoEnjLWpBZeZiYioOYb5D6Nt84zZd-1OLjZ_rWiq6peDXB02zhR2lrCHecTdGjwbLPQSvWdTz1HvPjvoxtF_SRYRJnVnR2VP4JAoNM98JiEwzd2NQCEA/s5171/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(5).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3103" data-original-width="5171" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyRUBCoJ7eEgwI8o-RtSuepivAnHERJ8rTOA9YUEU7dAorbarOTU1_dPjyFXmtiLiMXNreqoVoEnjLWpBZeZiYioOYb5D6Nt84zZd-1OLjZ_rWiq6peDXB02zhR2lrCHecTdGjwbLPQSvWdTz1HvPjvoxtF_SRYRJnVnR2VP4JAoNM98JiEwzd2NQCEA/w640-h384/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(5).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRYJGNdNfltKvOq7lwM-2N1G7F3-PcY5Etoy_dkurlO2CvtTUlT_v_eLt7zjwG6zybOEfoCHzvhchZPHfJH0HzHclK8QBfcEY-OpjXTS5BZNPd_7Jl6uvE3q6kxfHMF-dg_CxRa3mDDH-6ePpCNxApNsEZJxJpxFG-FEmFHUV5zNJ-aFmT4fjrjwHE9A/s5161/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(6).jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3097" data-original-width="5161" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRYJGNdNfltKvOq7lwM-2N1G7F3-PcY5Etoy_dkurlO2CvtTUlT_v_eLt7zjwG6zybOEfoCHzvhchZPHfJH0HzHclK8QBfcEY-OpjXTS5BZNPd_7Jl6uvE3q6kxfHMF-dg_CxRa3mDDH-6ePpCNxApNsEZJxJpxFG-FEmFHUV5zNJ-aFmT4fjrjwHE9A/w640-h384/230624%20penallta%20observatory%20(6).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span><p></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-62432788280006137342023-06-20T17:00:00.001+01:002023-06-20T17:00:00.140+01:00Lamp post : Cheltenham<p>This is one of the most practical, yet also
one of the most unusual pieces of street furniture I've ever seen and, despite
extensive internet searching, I've neither been able to find records or images
of any others like it, nor any information about it, except the bare bones of
its description on the <a href="https://britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/101386683-lamp-post-opposite-number-30-number-30-not-included-cheltenham-park-ward" target="_blank">British Listed Buildings (BLB) website</a>. The entry reads:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">Grade II listed<br />
Lamp post. Late C19. Adapted for electricity. Cast-iron post with wrought-iron
enrichment and overthrow, wrought-iron leaves at 3m and 0.75m. Glazed brick
plinth. Drum with 4 bracketed buttresses alternating with quadrants.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2jhvmKSeTXxsUV5uIG4Qh_9Slh0TNQR2ukZZcX8VEhJyeAWbrseYrH1PIrJJCjBDSwFr5M_-Z0R8SLrJH7_SlOwC3xJhBtm01I1dsf5JHID1DFwp8Uhog3JXz1rRd3cau19maya0gu3G0lOFhEqz2HPrIbF9t7RhBEuISXzDeMToCL0ydwQof9h2QlQ/s5432/230620%20street%20lamp%20seat%20cheltenham%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4041" data-original-width="5432" height="476" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2jhvmKSeTXxsUV5uIG4Qh_9Slh0TNQR2ukZZcX8VEhJyeAWbrseYrH1PIrJJCjBDSwFr5M_-Z0R8SLrJH7_SlOwC3xJhBtm01I1dsf5JHID1DFwp8Uhog3JXz1rRd3cau19maya0gu3G0lOFhEqz2HPrIbF9t7RhBEuISXzDeMToCL0ydwQof9h2QlQ/w640-h476/230620%20street%20lamp%20seat%20cheltenham%20(1).jpg" width="640" /></a><br /><br /></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Though the listing makes no mention of the
use of the 'glazed brick plinth', my fertile imagination sees a Victorian
gentleman or two, each seated on a corner of the plinth, reading their
newspapers by the light of the gas lamp and engaging in earnest conversation
about the state of the world around them.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibc2IoGaTN-SNkkDXKtTqLTmNOSEyZrGBOexNkZiFUW0gUpxjElKdihMhSL8PmL6cE7MO1O9QjGNzpBi8STjcuSqsmZ8VFB0bteBUOSlFt7NXLFQ5TDsJY_q-Pw5LoDsogLhvg7l4jXtV_grwMmyTlVJV2Xtr3CnpgkQK-MStx8CQDsRq4g_5OhgDBIw/s1266/230620%20street%20lamp%20seat%20cheltenham%20(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="1266" height="304" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibc2IoGaTN-SNkkDXKtTqLTmNOSEyZrGBOexNkZiFUW0gUpxjElKdihMhSL8PmL6cE7MO1O9QjGNzpBi8STjcuSqsmZ8VFB0bteBUOSlFt7NXLFQ5TDsJY_q-Pw5LoDsogLhvg7l4jXtV_grwMmyTlVJV2Xtr3CnpgkQK-MStx8CQDsRq4g_5OhgDBIw/w640-h304/230620%20street%20lamp%20seat%20cheltenham%20(2).jpg" width="640" /></a><br /><br /></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">In my enthusiasm for the ceramics of this
amazing piece of street furniture - in particular, the gaping jaws of the ferocious lions, I completely forget to take an image of the
whole lamp post but you can see one on the <a href="https://britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/101386683-lamp-post-opposite-number-30-number-30-not-included-cheltenham-park-ward" target="_blank">BLB website</a>.</span></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-51142346205261744432023-06-18T17:00:00.001+01:002023-06-18T17:00:00.133+01:00Post box : a Penfold Victoria, Cheltenham<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe83gzLkmHbes1VLO9c3UGXaLaTzObrnTPqrRsrLBzLf9Din3uTHWpQ0mj6uT2yULpHOv6d3oEMPnSTAvJOzgKX9K8R4Z16Iq8lxPqXzvAByiiVAzKmFkW0L3q5qsXb5CM4SiN_rkELGyFc-5aVsCgQd6ldgVgoEfqw05vnloBjOsxpSRS7biyrZ6M8Q/s4104/230618%20victoria%20penfold%20postbox%20cheltenham.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4104" data-original-width="2462" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhe83gzLkmHbes1VLO9c3UGXaLaTzObrnTPqrRsrLBzLf9Din3uTHWpQ0mj6uT2yULpHOv6d3oEMPnSTAvJOzgKX9K8R4Z16Iq8lxPqXzvAByiiVAzKmFkW0L3q5qsXb5CM4SiN_rkELGyFc-5aVsCgQd6ldgVgoEfqw05vnloBjOsxpSRS7biyrZ6M8Q/w384-h640/230618%20victoria%20penfold%20postbox%20cheltenham.jpg" width="384" /></a></div><br />Little did I realise when I took this photo
that my subject was one of only about 20 of the original 1866 Victorian Penfold
post boxes still surviving the ravages of time and humans in Britain and that,
amazingly, eight of those 20 can be found in Cheltenham.<p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The Penfold name is a nod to their designer
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Penfold" target="_blank">John Wornham Penfold</a> (1828-1909), whose rather fancy hexagonal post box,
complete with decorative beading and acanthus leaves, replaced the original plain
round post boxes that first came into use in the early 1860s.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Penfold's design,
with only minor changes, continued to be used until 1879 when round boxes
returned to fashion.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">My photo shows the box in Lansdown Road;
the others can be seen, and more information read in an article from the BBC
news website <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-gloucestershire-23354673" target="_blank">'Cheltenham's "rare"' Penfold post boxes'</a>, 20 July 2013.</span></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-91558753539422207422023-06-13T10:49:00.000+01:002023-06-13T10:49:01.697+01:00Bandstand : Montpellier Gardens, Cheltenham<p>I'm a big fan of bandstands (and there are
various posts on here about those I've seen, for example <i><a href="http://sconzani.blogspot.com/2019/07/bandstands.html" target="_blank">Bandstands</a></i>, July 2019; and <i><a href="http://sconzani.blogspot.com/2019/08/bandstands-cardiff.html" target="_blank">Bandstands: Cardiff</a></i>, August 2019), so I was delighted to spot this Victorian
bandstand in Montpellier Gardens during my recent visit to Cheltenham. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGrVlArq5polNldF2D_EfsW8MsExdaPiK_eR0ngrbSkIINJO6KIG_WjJJORJLH7_SJZNSTvajGn9aByYF9YymOtGFCp07EaR2J9FxQB8DrO3zigJQv4hOsnOaV-ExEe8DpW7HnyofE6DnJpuJUZLyR72smTKtRNzOSMjPtRbllVN6Us6S7DdieW1WMBA/s3865/230613%20bandstand%20montpellier%20park%20cheltenham%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2577" data-original-width="3865" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGrVlArq5polNldF2D_EfsW8MsExdaPiK_eR0ngrbSkIINJO6KIG_WjJJORJLH7_SJZNSTvajGn9aByYF9YymOtGFCp07EaR2J9FxQB8DrO3zigJQv4hOsnOaV-ExEe8DpW7HnyofE6DnJpuJUZLyR72smTKtRNzOSMjPtRbllVN6Us6S7DdieW1WMBA/w640-h426/230613%20bandstand%20montpellier%20park%20cheltenham%20(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I was equally delighted to find that the
history of the bandstand has been documented by the local history society, and a
pdf of the original article, complete with excellent historic photographs, is
available online (<a href="https://gloshistory.org.uk/sites/reprints/gh200411.pdf" target="_blank">'Cheltenham's Bandstands' by Mike Kippin</a>, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Goucestershire History</i>, no. 18, 2004,
pp.11-16). Mike Kippin writes that</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">The present
Montpellier bandstand was erected and first used in September 1864, which makes
it the oldest bandstand in the British Isles that is still in use. There are
two that are older; Birkenhead Park (1847) and Clapham Common (1861), but
neither of these are used today. [Bear in mind that this was written in 2004
and may not now be accurate.] </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Kippin also notes that 'The Coalbrookdale
Company of Ironbridge made the wrought iron work' and that 'The base of the
bandstand is quite deep and roomy and in Edwardian times the Cheltenham Archers
who shot in the gardens used it as a store. During WWII it was home for the
winch of a barrage balloon.'<br /> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXb14fORtmtZxR5_A1Mt-7pZ8pX64k3noUZvs6jRE_fIgN5t5O0LKru0HM6mRky6PLfqHzPRXcjNUXuHd0tCCHdKE-fgHkn1n2Ra-Oj82MVZEjtahJFX9P7PQCLM7OqH2YP6dgW_rGlFzNlnR8tzyV-QX8VPwQ_gIZl_cWGFbADFFWkg9CcI1Fa53B0g/s3684/230613%20bandstand%20montpellier%20park%20cheltenham%20(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2456" data-original-width="3684" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXb14fORtmtZxR5_A1Mt-7pZ8pX64k3noUZvs6jRE_fIgN5t5O0LKru0HM6mRky6PLfqHzPRXcjNUXuHd0tCCHdKE-fgHkn1n2Ra-Oj82MVZEjtahJFX9P7PQCLM7OqH2YP6dgW_rGlFzNlnR8tzyV-QX8VPwQ_gIZl_cWGFbADFFWkg9CcI1Fa53B0g/w640-h426/230613%20bandstand%20montpellier%20park%20cheltenham%20(2).jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal">In the early 1990s, the bandstand was in a
state of disrepair and various suggestions were made – to move it, to convert
it into a restaurant. Fortunately, the</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">Cheltenham Civic
Society ... fortuitously stepped in and offered to organise its restoration.
After a considerable amount of work, the late Sir Charles Irving M.P. officially
reopened the bandstand on 20 August 1994.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The bandstand is still used for concerts
during the summer months. It's just a shame I hadn't timed my visit to enjoy
one!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikFG8t_PaVc51WwV3HqFdqVIZ3PRLcuHMZi-Z3uTDbTz7ulEddqyNBL6W_B_yfULlTb2PrpzCthMiQ0p-LVSUa7IPHL0fIWWszo9ZRLgukqVEh4fZ6sIv6plKXO5mRcLcHMiUQ-tdeCRYJBM2K0jd2mpPancRjm230dgw9YOztrQD0tjHR-qTwl_W8EQ/s3755/230613%20bandstand%20montpellier%20park%20cheltenham%20(3).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2503" data-original-width="3755" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikFG8t_PaVc51WwV3HqFdqVIZ3PRLcuHMZi-Z3uTDbTz7ulEddqyNBL6W_B_yfULlTb2PrpzCthMiQ0p-LVSUa7IPHL0fIWWszo9ZRLgukqVEh4fZ6sIv6plKXO5mRcLcHMiUQ-tdeCRYJBM2K0jd2mpPancRjm230dgw9YOztrQD0tjHR-qTwl_W8EQ/w640-h426/230613%20bandstand%20montpellier%20park%20cheltenham%20(3).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span><p></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-89556207599494828102023-06-07T18:05:00.000+01:002023-06-07T18:05:05.643+01:00Unwin's Fountain<p>Here's another magnificent fountain from my
walk through Cheltenham's Sandford Park, not a former drinking fountain this
time but a regular work of sculptural art, with winged cherubs sitting astride
dolphin-like sea creatures below, open-winged swans encircling the water-filled
bowl at the top, and, my personal favourites, mysterious water-spouting creatures in between. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDxjV1E581uLDdC_sG22DRnqDIlW0_ETUZYV02h15q1snqdDLaZ-6LsMGzkftM9Xaexsv2KxquxbmXm7DeeW1P6DoM8MxEtRDGCXXrhULKX6txWGuPejUSpjH2q6KaDQwLMj_HnYGDzMRwqqWiOfcc7G-SfQYHGqUsCsp98DYf6tNXTnuHQPDTkax2hg/s3637/230607%20cheltenham%20unwins%20fountain%20(3).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2425" data-original-width="3637" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDxjV1E581uLDdC_sG22DRnqDIlW0_ETUZYV02h15q1snqdDLaZ-6LsMGzkftM9Xaexsv2KxquxbmXm7DeeW1P6DoM8MxEtRDGCXXrhULKX6txWGuPejUSpjH2q6KaDQwLMj_HnYGDzMRwqqWiOfcc7G-SfQYHGqUsCsp98DYf6tNXTnuHQPDTkax2hg/w640-h426/230607%20cheltenham%20unwins%20fountain%20(3).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">This from the park signboard:</span> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">The cherub
adorned Unwin's Fountain in front of you was erected as a memorial to Herbert
Unwin by his children in 1925. Unwin, a Yorkshire businessman owned a coalmine,
brewery, and newspaper. He bought Arle Court, Cheltenham, at an auction in 1904
and dedicated much of his time and resources to restoring the Victorian
mansion.</span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSkOqV-Vnyk2j1bzfPQbRzrOj2UJjxXKS14z5ncjYcBrFwLgoM52bBobUG0bxPN3pvAJpWAgS000Pl88F2kDY82EEJa_UE_sm1twdT8TPT7NSbWWl_4gEu2opwyBHo6-CwDB8T22qcUjU3PQZX6BJEYHbCeZmFlsjZisduRR7IFCiXwoePl_ns86nIAw/s3501/230607%20cheltenham%20unwins%20fountain%20(2).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2581" data-original-width="3501" height="472" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSkOqV-Vnyk2j1bzfPQbRzrOj2UJjxXKS14z5ncjYcBrFwLgoM52bBobUG0bxPN3pvAJpWAgS000Pl88F2kDY82EEJa_UE_sm1twdT8TPT7NSbWWl_4gEu2opwyBHo6-CwDB8T22qcUjU3PQZX6BJEYHbCeZmFlsjZisduRR7IFCiXwoePl_ns86nIAw/w640-h472/230607%20cheltenham%20unwins%20fountain%20(2).jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4U9Bam-r16IS28JrkrpRnFyemi6oBCGgZtVkOqOMNORQ38CntOqe1pa2NBq1A4hj1qfoHTe6Hs2tv7hDKNbKxi-2WOdj4GYYsYTkuoZF2xqG_alAk3LUDPpPnhJAREZT9mnmSeaZNaCdU_A9a7BHep02-RuIYEAJ27Gf8QckdQu0CavuKo2tTCj354A/s4104/230607%20cheltenham%20unwins%20fountain%20(1).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2736" data-original-width="4104" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4U9Bam-r16IS28JrkrpRnFyemi6oBCGgZtVkOqOMNORQ38CntOqe1pa2NBq1A4hj1qfoHTe6Hs2tv7hDKNbKxi-2WOdj4GYYsYTkuoZF2xqG_alAk3LUDPpPnhJAREZT9mnmSeaZNaCdU_A9a7BHep02-RuIYEAJ27Gf8QckdQu0CavuKo2tTCj354A/w640-h426/230607%20cheltenham%20unwins%20fountain%20(1).jpg" width="640" /></a></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><p></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-79139469105993941452023-06-06T18:45:00.001+01:002023-06-06T18:45:06.631+01:00The Whish Fountain<p><span lang="EN-GB">I'm in Cheltenham for a mini-break, my
first time away since October 2019, before Covid, and I've spent this afternoon
walking the streets, admiring the stunning Regency architecture, enjoying the tree-lined
streets, and beautiful parks. I found this, the Whish Fountain, in Sandford
Park. The signboard explained:</span> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">The Whish
Fountain is named after the three benevolent Whish sisters, Mary, Anne and
Ellen. To commemorate their fifty years' residency in Cheltenham, the elderly
sisters kindly commissioned and donated the drinking fountain as a gift to the
people in 1891.<br /><br />
Carved out of Seaton stone, with a 22 foot high weather vane, the fountain was
originally installed at Westal Green on the Lansdown Road in 1901. Due to road
widening and redevelopment of that site, the fountain was later rehomed to
Sandford Park in 1929, where it has remained a decorative feature without its
fountain and vane.</span> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQbYCXQC1RrCEv7itXXjdFzplNtbjEGPyz94OlooDFYReHgS-5-CvpKcwMOW6a6oXZOpL8o4GuYD41mW-cvSvq3iuso6FPlD2k2KrIHDEtkM9OzLoWh46jBAF62IsH45rckMBruFExDZifl_W1FdObFrvNH3qcdE7IbT6l5u508mM7B_bBIu-SgsR2Iw/s3978/230606%20whish%20fountain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2652" data-original-width="3978" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQbYCXQC1RrCEv7itXXjdFzplNtbjEGPyz94OlooDFYReHgS-5-CvpKcwMOW6a6oXZOpL8o4GuYD41mW-cvSvq3iuso6FPlD2k2KrIHDEtkM9OzLoWh46jBAF62IsH45rckMBruFExDZifl_W1FdObFrvNH3qcdE7IbT6l5u508mM7B_bBIu-SgsR2Iw/w640-h426/230606%20whish%20fountain.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-77854837327093878702023-06-05T22:44:00.002+01:002023-06-06T10:04:14.717+01:00Another day, another bench <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEidGx69OUiPyOZH7x5Guyo2g7dkH348SCkNOV7rkWf9c7yvi0yClg5XvL9WfIhg0u_NFmOLaRW41x0_HUoPqmqHFW5sznqqrFa4ina1e96VOjOlq6qWf51nDficVXxb-dBgSaWGkGAKvA2ea6696nobnV-rWBgiNFiwtzEUPqjItlZm2nulBOo4SkgICQ" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
<img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEidGx69OUiPyOZH7x5Guyo2g7dkH348SCkNOV7rkWf9c7yvi0yClg5XvL9WfIhg0u_NFmOLaRW41x0_HUoPqmqHFW5sznqqrFa4ina1e96VOjOlq6qWf51nDficVXxb-dBgSaWGkGAKvA2ea6696nobnV-rWBgiNFiwtzEUPqjItlZm2nulBOo4SkgICQ=w640-h480" width="640" />
</a>
</div>Ever get the feeling you're being watched? But by a bench? I think this design is very clever.sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-54389826140098135962023-05-31T16:07:00.001+01:002023-05-31T16:07:58.891+01:00A splendid bench <p>It's well past time I was active again on this blog so I've decided to post interesting things I notice on my wanders. These will mostly be phone photos so not the best quality but I hope my few remaining followers enjoy these snippets. </p><p>Today's offering is the magnificent ironwork from a bench in a local park.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpmohN1c39gt3ffnJ75Gq_A1XssAiZ5sA2PctS87Y9e1jnZ-AJM10pEKNOiAoG5NvmURyseOpwZ07rgUKDP8otA2OCMmhSM3zBLg1HlwG7rC__7t5NtLaBAn-F4BYcu-xX2OxTX_-A_FMAVlGaOuAk9ItgZ31pAUFjDc20OOimHRLLk4qTqsMIzep-Xw/s4128/230531%20penarth%20bench.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4128" data-original-width="3096" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpmohN1c39gt3ffnJ75Gq_A1XssAiZ5sA2PctS87Y9e1jnZ-AJM10pEKNOiAoG5NvmURyseOpwZ07rgUKDP8otA2OCMmhSM3zBLg1HlwG7rC__7t5NtLaBAn-F4BYcu-xX2OxTX_-A_FMAVlGaOuAk9ItgZ31pAUFjDc20OOimHRLLk4qTqsMIzep-Xw/w480-h640/230531%20penarth%20bench.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-54182152219205673262021-11-26T09:00:00.002+00:002021-11-26T09:00:00.165+00:00National Gutters Day : Penarth<p>Today is <a href="https://www.spab.org.uk/news/maintenance-win-more-sustainable-homes" target="_blank">National Gutters Day 2021</a>, which
has motivated me finally to write another post for this blog, to share these
photos of some gutters in the Victorian seaside town of Penarth, in south
Wales.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6bw8_aiJEoJDdMp9DKBz4T5uncRl3rN1DKEm7HyqKhRlhfEivVu4dZeAiqY6zq8nbJ4iUXQMiYw0EifuWrDwn3bvrUZdHkU8kmYy5z18i1zxeaiRQC5EiMnnHEl1ZFNcKv0v_el7HIkX3/s2048/211126+%25282%2529+penarth+all+saints.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6bw8_aiJEoJDdMp9DKBz4T5uncRl3rN1DKEm7HyqKhRlhfEivVu4dZeAiqY6zq8nbJ4iUXQMiYw0EifuWrDwn3bvrUZdHkU8kmYy5z18i1zxeaiRQC5EiMnnHEl1ZFNcKv0v_el7HIkX3/w640-h384/211126+%25282%2529+penarth+all+saints.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /> Built originally between 1889 and 1891,
then rebuilt in 1926 after a devastating fire, <b>All Saints Church </b>sits in a tree-filled green space in central
Penarth. As you see from the photo above, its gutters are not dated so I’m not
sure if they date from the late 19th century or from the more recent
reconstruction.<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixnzVTE4ywlzODTY2p0NiJw5zt3tV7zNgzfGRqQQ22tpcUajMPnUpXM-tqGBLdaIdLhtRXUscsBN3UTcAEteCsxQAI4urvR95uD9Je1YXy462vS_BkTl-X9LZezQrb3WwZ9GNWOGEGh8tA/s2048/211126+%25283%2529+Penarth+cemetery.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixnzVTE4ywlzODTY2p0NiJw5zt3tV7zNgzfGRqQQ22tpcUajMPnUpXM-tqGBLdaIdLhtRXUscsBN3UTcAEteCsxQAI4urvR95uD9Je1YXy462vS_BkTl-X9LZezQrb3WwZ9GNWOGEGh8tA/w640-h384/211126+%25283%2529+Penarth+cemetery.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Here’s another dating mystery. This gutter
hopper adorns the <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Mortuary Chapel</b> at
Penarth Cemetery. The building itself does not appear to be listed, and a
search of the Welsh newspaper archives failed to turn up any information on the
building of the chapel, though I did discover that the first burial in the
cemetery was in 1903. I’ve also not turned up any information on the Glaswegian
foundry that made this item.<br /></span> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvHTfnoyMcLqUNVpAPPuDaTGKp1z461RARRpuYvz-l1kcVGTCu9N1WsZTdaqcHUr_MY3_ANaJzpes7Y2yy_gkX0YPgctWTm6mSsWCJJpoao4FYHcEDb9LAALGn6XobK7pgnnnIp2HNdYIc/s2048/211126+%25284%2529+Penarth+StanwellSchl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvHTfnoyMcLqUNVpAPPuDaTGKp1z461RARRpuYvz-l1kcVGTCu9N1WsZTdaqcHUr_MY3_ANaJzpes7Y2yy_gkX0YPgctWTm6mSsWCJJpoao4FYHcEDb9LAALGn6XobK7pgnnnIp2HNdYIc/w640-h384/211126+%25284%2529+Penarth+StanwellSchl.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal">As you can see, this gutter on the old
building at <b>Stanwell School</b> has not
been well maintained so it’s difficult to make out its surface decoration. An
article in the <i>Weekly Mail</i> of 23
January 1897 reported on the recent opening of Penarth Intermediate School
which, though it has since changed its name and been much expanded, continues
to serve the education needs of local community in the 21st century.<br /><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm0l4ra_WSKM7rtEzc2FLg5cl5ZlRFjswJXGHTl5YwNHMh9PMXVYk-ci-BX3_IoLIfNdmXXZIJJD3Zum9TMdTpOznR4rwyqzjBXxvNuP4DprgVxPmsqXa3sViKSEi4Ax4awYRxfs7TwWEe/s2048/211126+%25285%2529+Penarth+HeadlandsSchl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm0l4ra_WSKM7rtEzc2FLg5cl5ZlRFjswJXGHTl5YwNHMh9PMXVYk-ci-BX3_IoLIfNdmXXZIJJD3Zum9TMdTpOznR4rwyqzjBXxvNuP4DprgVxPmsqXa3sViKSEi4Ax4awYRxfs7TwWEe/w640-h384/211126+%25285%2529+Penarth+HeadlandsSchl.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB">Headland
School </span></b><span lang="EN-GB">was originally the Penarth Hotel, built in
1868 by the Taff Vale Railway Company, when Penarth docks handled a lot of the
exports of coal pouring down from the valley of the River Taff. The building
was repurposed after World War One, when it was purchased by the widow of a war
casualty, one Major J.A. Gibbs. In the Major’s memory, his wife gifted the
building to the authorities who ran the National Children’s Homes, who used it
from July 1921 as a nautical training school.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI1AvhVsQTthKT6w1uz57oUFHimd1iW9qQM1cgQTAV5jbDCemepPt8-f9H-uNKpGGpZgnq6yiqdY-rmlKK3bblF3pYoYHrxcuYb_bIJXd7lg68FrKGV4G-zccmrHiXqBg6M3yQzxEEgcWO/s2526/211126+%25286%2529+Penarth+HeadlandsSchl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1245" data-original-width="2526" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI1AvhVsQTthKT6w1uz57oUFHimd1iW9qQM1cgQTAV5jbDCemepPt8-f9H-uNKpGGpZgnq6yiqdY-rmlKK3bblF3pYoYHrxcuYb_bIJXd7lg68FrKGV4G-zccmrHiXqBg6M3yQzxEEgcWO/w640-h316/211126+%25286%2529+Penarth+HeadlandsSchl.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span><p></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-52300784800450712692021-03-10T19:36:00.000+00:002021-03-10T19:36:13.081+00:00Doors : Penarth knockers<p>During this pandemic, while we’ve been
under local area restrictions, I’ve used some of my daily exercise walks to get
to know my town a little better. When I was checking out local houses last
December for my post on <a href="https://sconzani.blogspot.com/2020/12/doors-christmas-wreaths.html" target="_blank">Christmas wreaths</a> and then again in January for the street numbers (<a href="https://sconzani.blogspot.com/2021/01/house-numbers-1-to-10.html" target="_blank">House numbers, 1 to 10</a> and <a href="https://sconzani.blogspot.com/2021/01/house-numbers-11-to-20.html" target="_blank">House numbers, 11 to 20</a>), I couldn’t help admiring the knockers
some house owners have adorning their front doors.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguZbEBgVJ8sz5FstUrr6-HNwGgNJxTypXXZXlWAL66zweh6cbwOLm9z6zH3RwwfA9TZ_Irva_NitB-MCd5E_S__9hjymNaZOrBhy-bYJCPtmtFsQT7_MduZtexk7mhCgUE_T7JCqVILMFN/s2048/210310+door+knockers+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguZbEBgVJ8sz5FstUrr6-HNwGgNJxTypXXZXlWAL66zweh6cbwOLm9z6zH3RwwfA9TZ_Irva_NitB-MCd5E_S__9hjymNaZOrBhy-bYJCPtmtFsQT7_MduZtexk7mhCgUE_T7JCqVILMFN/w640-h426/210310+door+knockers+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlO1fhyphenhyphennjnYJJrZnpekrwnyJr88esFa_dTz3_9Xclr4C1F3t0CncX0_HdyeHs8cX0BJ3hMQ31ZIvDM3NRFlaXgDnYOJORUv78MiLaCpOHeLYK7S0gka4Dh1-XPLExWPzDoosrBbObODNHl/s2048/210310+door+knockers+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlO1fhyphenhyphennjnYJJrZnpekrwnyJr88esFa_dTz3_9Xclr4C1F3t0CncX0_HdyeHs8cX0BJ3hMQ31ZIvDM3NRFlaXgDnYOJORUv78MiLaCpOHeLYK7S0gka4Dh1-XPLExWPzDoosrBbObODNHl/w640-h426/210310+door+knockers+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Some are old but still stylish – lions have
long been a favourite of mine ...</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicF2v3NfhCFzynnN-kgmNZ8EjCDK6hAJ0xRcz1HZfturlOY3uBZzvuklT3zcCvrY5OpvNEjmX9y9tqTkemiHRV_nIhqYDC-OVRmS-KgVvadp8hhyphenhyphenQ6_mPxfrBviJE8VWfdP1v1vXPdjp7o/s2048/210310+door+knockers+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicF2v3NfhCFzynnN-kgmNZ8EjCDK6hAJ0xRcz1HZfturlOY3uBZzvuklT3zcCvrY5OpvNEjmX9y9tqTkemiHRV_nIhqYDC-OVRmS-KgVvadp8hhyphenhyphenQ6_mPxfrBviJE8VWfdP1v1vXPdjp7o/w640-h426/210310+door+knockers+%25284%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixZoxhA5AH-NmCZHzXEqyUF5fl0WnF5p-QwzMT5bDTqAKiMe5EID96tgymbkIrgvTvGluWxIpQLs5p7T_NEFWIvHOds-UjkGdMrD8fHxNs-bMM_2XITWvgmREO_bHXV4CAGHq72M4LvpX8/s2048/210310+door+knockers+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixZoxhA5AH-NmCZHzXEqyUF5fl0WnF5p-QwzMT5bDTqAKiMe5EID96tgymbkIrgvTvGluWxIpQLs5p7T_NEFWIvHOds-UjkGdMrD8fHxNs-bMM_2XITWvgmREO_bHXV4CAGHq72M4LvpX8/w640-h426/210310+door+knockers+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Many are very similar to each other, the
same overall size, shape and design, and were perhaps attached when the houses
were first built ...</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4VDlk7iPeiSKOknB-NqrX9dM85vyZN_n_miZLqH7gYanW9sXpUtx8F4XRgqdGHicmSiJzat6Pa6xMnxfUgUn7rDgm823idv04nO6vFRjGM_-NxqXlCRr3hl33imrcKntMbY8d4YggPwgP/s2048/210310+door+knockers+%25286%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4VDlk7iPeiSKOknB-NqrX9dM85vyZN_n_miZLqH7gYanW9sXpUtx8F4XRgqdGHicmSiJzat6Pa6xMnxfUgUn7rDgm823idv04nO6vFRjGM_-NxqXlCRr3hl33imrcKntMbY8d4YggPwgP/w640-h426/210310+door+knockers+%25286%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBgkJTJDGjzgsTg6ij9ehmt2guhLI0Pfq5JZAu0G9otZQVL-pc2VrJ47ntg6-ovqjtfxwcoA1oc4aMzbenQnfWlqjx83ATbrox7ZRALMCkAo-4t5dLl-Ocb8_dA9-OgYmZSeWRgkY7k0QD/s2048/210310+door+knockers+%25285%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBgkJTJDGjzgsTg6ij9ehmt2guhLI0Pfq5JZAu0G9otZQVL-pc2VrJ47ntg6-ovqjtfxwcoA1oc4aMzbenQnfWlqjx83ATbrox7ZRALMCkAo-4t5dLl-Ocb8_dA9-OgYmZSeWRgkY7k0QD/w640-h426/210310+door+knockers+%25285%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Others are simple geometric shapes,
functional, practical ...</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhX-FdsdJxYEYd4Iy0DyagyW-t15qlYjWd-Yg6PNOm8VIlUcbStCWaWUm6oI1Y_OIxgMDNE-D-JpOJV33I00p2jNegFcH4Rp9YunnVOrgMzoZuKiqVnLLvgDVKM9WXBgBqdLaDnXUwUSMJ/s2048/210310+door+knockers+%25288%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhX-FdsdJxYEYd4Iy0DyagyW-t15qlYjWd-Yg6PNOm8VIlUcbStCWaWUm6oI1Y_OIxgMDNE-D-JpOJV33I00p2jNegFcH4Rp9YunnVOrgMzoZuKiqVnLLvgDVKM9WXBgBqdLaDnXUwUSMJ/w640-h426/210310+door+knockers+%25288%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-6nQhP21zTOjH0AX1hf1vJZ4p6iKVIIIynTYbLc1JQYTQnmzRNIQvCVPSZ1aySa6TyGbkXtcsg2vDpyCilQ2lAJ7kCyFpYbvldXFkyX2SXK0zVfFYLs7jhyphenhyphen8olJN42hHmh1vmH18F_0p4/s2048/210310+door+knockers+%25287%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-6nQhP21zTOjH0AX1hf1vJZ4p6iKVIIIynTYbLc1JQYTQnmzRNIQvCVPSZ1aySa6TyGbkXtcsg2vDpyCilQ2lAJ7kCyFpYbvldXFkyX2SXK0zVfFYLs7jhyphenhyphen8olJN42hHmh1vmH18F_0p4/w640-h426/210310+door+knockers+%25287%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The best to my eyes – the ones I would love
to have on my front door, if I had one – are the more creative designs, perhaps
reflecting the house’s location – the anchor a nod to the adjacent marina, or a
personal interest – the nature-lovers who chose the fox, the bee and that
stunning snail.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLlDxiqWJnEdZjt_TOttbTYPHfXWwwfezCDreGciYSku9tJzeoPEqs9Dc_vyRPa4qEFkCRHwJuHj-Kz3679HJ7DVaOkC67BA5gjbvQxOhUeseIpt2Ne0-B35Dyehc_xVj9j62QOtpioPAm/s2048/210310+door+knockers+%252810%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLlDxiqWJnEdZjt_TOttbTYPHfXWwwfezCDreGciYSku9tJzeoPEqs9Dc_vyRPa4qEFkCRHwJuHj-Kz3679HJ7DVaOkC67BA5gjbvQxOhUeseIpt2Ne0-B35Dyehc_xVj9j62QOtpioPAm/w640-h426/210310+door+knockers+%252810%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiJPqCxI0osZBSS8eogJMA1av5HNHdHZ6pKzof3hcd8N0NEUqopEi4UBJ1AGiU9xYSUOO1mzP59mi3_t5wNhhk8kBA-cEQLRpv5of12irISceoWu5kisviUBfiZKmKAOsbzVVY1t95NiWM/s2048/210310+door+knockers+%25289%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1366" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiJPqCxI0osZBSS8eogJMA1av5HNHdHZ6pKzof3hcd8N0NEUqopEi4UBJ1AGiU9xYSUOO1mzP59mi3_t5wNhhk8kBA-cEQLRpv5of12irISceoWu5kisviUBfiZKmKAOsbzVVY1t95NiWM/w640-h426/210310+door+knockers+%25289%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">With these delightful door knockers, the
home owners have added a touch of their own personality and more than a little
panache to their front doors. And what an impressive statement they make to the
world.</span></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-75886534031062824952021-02-28T17:00:00.001+00:002021-02-28T17:00:20.623+00:00It’s a sign: Penarth<p>I haven’t published a blog about signs for
a while so, without further ado, here are some I’ve seen on my local exercise
walks.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmLVTZzcavcK1D9DVxE7_gnW5sLmxfwM_gm_GjCAEeqb6fuKwYrLsWqvTayfkKesL-WI3hmz7vR8f4bk5_LgVOf45StMvL1wR0-CpGy_3Wykvy6GhUDcPDxHvBbqtyZnkd_AlNiNbuJ6wU/s2048/210228+Penarth+AlexParkGates.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmLVTZzcavcK1D9DVxE7_gnW5sLmxfwM_gm_GjCAEeqb6fuKwYrLsWqvTayfkKesL-WI3hmz7vR8f4bk5_LgVOf45StMvL1wR0-CpGy_3Wykvy6GhUDcPDxHvBbqtyZnkd_AlNiNbuJ6wU/w640-h384/210228+Penarth+AlexParkGates.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><b>Dogs
must be led<br /></b></span>To mark the passing of 117 years since its
opening, I blogged about <a href="https://sconzani.blogspot.com/2019/06/penarth-alexandra-park.html" target="_blank">Penarth’s Alexandra Park</a> back in June 2019. This sign, mandating that ‘dogs must be led’,
can be found on one of the park’s main entrance gates. I’m not sure if the sign
is as old as the park or, indeed, what dog control bylaws were in place in
1902. Regardless of the instruction, or the current bylaws, almost every dog
owner ignores this sign and allows their dog (or dogs) to roam at will. This
may surprise readers in other countries, as it also surprised me when I first
moved to Britain from New Zealand, where <a href="https://www.dia.govt.nz/diawebsite.nsf/wpg_URL/Resource-material-Dog-Control-Better-dog-control-=-safer-communities?OpenDocument" target="_blank">dog control laws</a> are much stricter and
more tightly policed. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNTi825ansJcNAiMdsijGgy7v49hng-C62IuZIJ8RZ24yUyxoT63rqrNqssJ_c_5eqePranKmmH7o7LkhOB4Th9R3DKi4uysUM1OF9zC2o21C-HLZjrYc7jgZJiOYGDkqJMGY6eM7SwD1X/s2048/210228+penarth+pier.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNTi825ansJcNAiMdsijGgy7v49hng-C62IuZIJ8RZ24yUyxoT63rqrNqssJ_c_5eqePranKmmH7o7LkhOB4Th9R3DKi4uysUM1OF9zC2o21C-HLZjrYc7jgZJiOYGDkqJMGY6eM7SwD1X/w640-h384/210228+penarth+pier.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><b>Do
not cut bait on the decking<br /></b></span>I also blogged about the opening of Penarth’s
pier on its anniversary, this time the 124th anniversary (<i><a href="https://sconzani.blogspot.com/2019/04/penarth-opening-of-pier.html" target="_blank">Penarth: the opening of the pier</a></i>, April 2019), though this is, of
course, a much more recent sign. Fishing off the pier is actually banned during
the summer months of June, July and August, and, at other times, is restricted
to specified areas but, even there, it seems the anglers have been damaging the
wooden boards with their knife work, hence the need for this sign. It’s not one
I’ve seen anywhere else.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHkcBUTcidFrIF5m-uhAvEZnGfxBFvk-zm8hSzbjg0EXUh4oDqOLFL3NosoloAqdr3GcOAZgxUKASoU6Qlikk7xhf2uPuzZW9iGs-n929op-UWqclIAWNdB2W_mqPo7Vw1Df4xHZu45YU9/s2048/210228+penarth+dangerous+cliffs+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHkcBUTcidFrIF5m-uhAvEZnGfxBFvk-zm8hSzbjg0EXUh4oDqOLFL3NosoloAqdr3GcOAZgxUKASoU6Qlikk7xhf2uPuzZW9iGs-n929op-UWqclIAWNdB2W_mqPo7Vw1Df4xHZu45YU9/w640-h384/210228+penarth+dangerous+cliffs+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidj8-FJhV1Vx7Xh2SzxDiJXZ3wxPVYwG8qpEEYNzBxinwLe4Pp0MCFqFS89cCG6XlOkfc0XjX7q04PsGCW-FarzMfJd127KmWfJCBv2D8WxJ8_GxZ-dqyv_FPwSj1N9g-2SmFUI-RgFY2B/s2048/210228+penarth+dangerous+cliffs+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidj8-FJhV1Vx7Xh2SzxDiJXZ3wxPVYwG8qpEEYNzBxinwLe4Pp0MCFqFS89cCG6XlOkfc0XjX7q04PsGCW-FarzMfJd127KmWfJCBv2D8WxJ8_GxZ-dqyv_FPwSj1N9g-2SmFUI-RgFY2B/w320-h320/210228+penarth+dangerous+cliffs+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span lang="EN-GB"><b>Dangerous
cliffs. Keep away<br /></b></span>I rather like the contrast between these new
and old signs, warning those who dare to walk along the shore beneath the
Penarth Head cliffs, of the danger of falling rocks. Unfortunately, despite
plenty of visual evidence of recent rock falls and even, in places, the sound of
constantly falling pebbles, many people ignore these signs and walk far closer
to the bottom of the cliffs than is healthy.<p></p>As you can see, the old sign also warns the
unwary of being caught by the high tides. This should also not be ignored, as
the Bristol Channel has the second highest tidal range in the world, at between
12 and 14 metres, and there is literally nowhere to go if you get caught below
these cliffs when the tide is at its highest extent. <p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I find it particularly interesting that,
while both signs give their warnings in English and Welsh, the old sign also
repeats the message in French. Were the majority of tourists visiting Penarth in
times past of French origin, or were the locals expecting an invasion?</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMMJERS7HUFpb10o9gDU5hiNEqT5gs1O0xxmFFJ-0V5f-O2pmEEPGhiuOzKpik0lZO-yoYBpgG41tE4Hh1038WRaIJyRqo5mekK5JXTpS_QYGYtFYGdcopGNBZOZQ1e62uQYKIU4T2OZPW/s2048/210228+Penarth+hedgehog+crossing+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMMJERS7HUFpb10o9gDU5hiNEqT5gs1O0xxmFFJ-0V5f-O2pmEEPGhiuOzKpik0lZO-yoYBpgG41tE4Hh1038WRaIJyRqo5mekK5JXTpS_QYGYtFYGdcopGNBZOZQ1e62uQYKIU4T2OZPW/w640-h384/210228+Penarth+hedgehog+crossing+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><b></b></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikKipdlLdmR3qPM70Mp5yEv5SnJ0Fb9fND7i1paHtqfpbk31PpL4b-IMoDtJKX-XXIHKvEyYURtkCCVUztS8r5aQ-OMwrqrqkBDJiKGUOsAaRThjv-uJFet9GDeF2lksqTCOCvqFB1xKNx/s2048/210228+Penarth+hedgehog+crossing+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="2048" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikKipdlLdmR3qPM70Mp5yEv5SnJ0Fb9fND7i1paHtqfpbk31PpL4b-IMoDtJKX-XXIHKvEyYURtkCCVUztS8r5aQ-OMwrqrqkBDJiKGUOsAaRThjv-uJFet9GDeF2lksqTCOCvqFB1xKNx/s320/210228+Penarth+hedgehog+crossing+%25282%2529.jpg" /></a></b></div><b><br />Hedgehog
crossing area<br /></b>I definitely approve of signs like this,
warning vehicle users to be aware of animals, of all kinds, crossing roads,
though in this case the sign seems rather superfluous. <p></p><p class="MsoNormal">It’s at the blocked end
of a little-used lane, where at most two residents’ cars would pass. Also, the
gate to which it’s attached doesn’t have a hole at the bottom for hedgehogs to
pass under and into the garden beyond. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Perhaps the residents just want to show
their general appreciation of and support for any hedgehogs that happen to be
passing. Can hedgehogs read, I wonder?</p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-31075410483032035922021-02-21T09:30:00.000+00:002021-02-21T09:30:55.039+00:00Cardiff art: Three Ellipses<p>If you’ve ever walked over the Cardiff Bay
Barrage, you might have noticed splotches of yellow paint, seemingly splattered
randomly around the lock area, under your feet, on parts of railings and halves
of benches, partially covering life buoys, swiped across fixtures and fittings.
It’s really quite bizarre!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLJK6-VdxYNoLO-o6k4ZtPqrbMWrGu_8ypXYOHC7Pwl-g4MXVutDvHMnfdPXj0CMYdw7f5tGvFrXyQmVpgaftXns6dXsN4FPQVcJ3DeSMen0zSlrRDKxlURFbzJH1Gux4tE7GKJZ4GWMz-/s2528/210221+three+eclipses+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1244" data-original-width="2528" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLJK6-VdxYNoLO-o6k4ZtPqrbMWrGu_8ypXYOHC7Pwl-g4MXVutDvHMnfdPXj0CMYdw7f5tGvFrXyQmVpgaftXns6dXsN4FPQVcJ3DeSMen0zSlrRDKxlURFbzJH1Gux4tE7GKJZ4GWMz-/w640-h314/210221+three+eclipses+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">As well as being the colour of sunshine and
warmth, yellow is also a colour of caution, warning of the need to be careful,
to take safety precautions, so painting surfaces yellow can indicate trip
hazards, concealed danger, potential obstacles. But that doesn’t seem to be the
case here.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ-XbJdBqz73dr7syYeLaXSWNtl-6vIG7b0Im6H9Uo2kj8j6uMGGTXzTyGELbJpoqCHcZkNhX_c9ijBkxcH3Gcn5N_2PufVcPVKSMlgSyiXeakgosDOYlj2mY_zPi6r8VVaMMrp3mlbHdu/s2526/210221+three+eclipses+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1244" data-original-width="2526" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ-XbJdBqz73dr7syYeLaXSWNtl-6vIG7b0Im6H9Uo2kj8j6uMGGTXzTyGELbJpoqCHcZkNhX_c9ijBkxcH3Gcn5N_2PufVcPVKSMlgSyiXeakgosDOYlj2mY_zPi6r8VVaMMrp3mlbHdu/w640-h316/210221+three+eclipses+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The colour yellow is also known for its
high visibility, which is why it’s often used on road safety signage, on
ambulances, police vehicles and fire engines. The colour can be seen, the
painted shapes recognised from a distance. Now maybe we’re getting closer to an
explanation of the Barrage blotches?</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglxF_y4AaIoVEny6eQGetVItO_DYiWhqG85ughjybbIO5VmzuVf8sUpdfp9TrgeITvoDVl7iYSasFeUHqiCsIV7pDnsH8_t4-ZMiZ67kjIBTHD2my1qqAxhHu7OV18kW8HNaNoIhyphenhyphenZaOOj/s2530/210221+three+eclipses+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1243" data-original-width="2530" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglxF_y4AaIoVEny6eQGetVItO_DYiWhqG85ughjybbIO5VmzuVf8sUpdfp9TrgeITvoDVl7iYSasFeUHqiCsIV7pDnsH8_t4-ZMiZ67kjIBTHD2my1qqAxhHu7OV18kW8HNaNoIhyphenhyphenZaOOj/w640-h314/210221+three+eclipses+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">There’s only one way to solve this mystery,
and that’s to stand in one specific spot on the Barrage near the locks and look
seaward. Only then can you see, in its entirety, the amazing artwork that is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Three Eclipses for Three Locks</i>.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE1q2giWCGKCMCCfRY9xtkuWfF01YQlQRNWyal6yGQ0t7klQXBqBIIBpPy8hcYXmwEpg2Ep1k18iDlg78Ygf9ecdsr3TxJM8HbrmLjexQlxT3QmeqnBf0Huma8VXXybSQ3YQPvFF4iBPCR/s2048/210221+three+eclipses+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE1q2giWCGKCMCCfRY9xtkuWfF01YQlQRNWyal6yGQ0t7klQXBqBIIBpPy8hcYXmwEpg2Ep1k18iDlg78Ygf9ecdsr3TxJM8HbrmLjexQlxT3QmeqnBf0Huma8VXXybSQ3YQPvFF4iBPCR/w640-h384/210221+three+eclipses+%25284%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The brainchild of Swiss artist, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felice_Varini" target="_blank">Felice Varini</a>, who specialises in optical illusional artworks, this piece was painted
on the Barrage in March 2007, by a team that included professional mountain
climbers to paint the less accessible spaces. I love it for the way it
challenges the mind of the viewer to figure out and complete the fragmented
puzzle but I do think it’s time the Cardiff Harbour Authority repainted it. It
would be a great shame, and a huge waste of the initial cost of £25,000, if
this piece was allowed to fade into obscurity.</span></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-70405186744648740782021-02-14T15:10:00.001+00:002021-02-14T15:10:26.204+00:00Llandough: inside St Dochdwy’s<p>I’ve blogged before about St Dochdwy’s
Church in Llandough, the exterior of the church (<i><a href="https://sconzani.blogspot.com/2020/04/llandough-st-dochdwys-church.html" target="_blank">Llandough: St Dochdwy’s Church</a></i>, 3 April 2020) and, a few days later, the magnificent Irbic
cross in the church yard (<i><a href="https://sconzani.blogspot.com/2020/04/llandough-irbic-cross.html" target="_blank">Llandough: the Irbic cross</a></i>). At that stage, I hadn’t been inside the
church but, recently, completely by chance, I had the opportunity to have a brief
look inside and to grab some quick photos.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihiiqVCahOersVrgsZhx1ep_qOdFvRQTT7xbZM1URh0JvV0KICDzUpWbQiZUO1qA5NU-qNvTsJnqhgFO-d8Rqx7FXts4dNmxJ_FrKLWRcM0AQb3OMT_59fV6KPo3bettj_5xAc9YrH-iSY/s2048/210214+st+dochdwys+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihiiqVCahOersVrgsZhx1ep_qOdFvRQTT7xbZM1URh0JvV0KICDzUpWbQiZUO1qA5NU-qNvTsJnqhgFO-d8Rqx7FXts4dNmxJ_FrKLWRcM0AQb3OMT_59fV6KPo3bettj_5xAc9YrH-iSY/w640-h426/210214+st+dochdwys+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Completed in 1866, by Penarth builder David
Jones to a design by Bristol architect Samuel Charles Fripp, the current church
incorporates elements of the previous church on this site, in particular ‘the
original Norman Chancel arch, which now links the south aisle to the bell tower’
(as per the <a href="http://www.parishofpenarthandllandough.co.uk/page13.html" target="_blank">St Dochdwy’s website</a>).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span>An article from the <i>Cardiff Times</i>, 13 July 1866, reports on the opening of this new
church:</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36pt; text-align: left;"><span lang="EN-GB">RE-OPENING OF LLANDOUGH NEW CHURCH.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNcF6ysfB56pKPmuR80_eq_NwG5SxJByC3x5QYR-HI5KT1shLZ40w9kIg9DqIyqEzj-pPL1VaA93Jbmb4RcASauc60L6hCNb2P4FrlCFfupCJlBunNoeeVldXNBHVraKJhHoq28I44G-Gm/s2048/210214+st+dochdwys+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1544" data-original-width="2048" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNcF6ysfB56pKPmuR80_eq_NwG5SxJByC3x5QYR-HI5KT1shLZ40w9kIg9DqIyqEzj-pPL1VaA93Jbmb4RcASauc60L6hCNb2P4FrlCFfupCJlBunNoeeVldXNBHVraKJhHoq28I44G-Gm/w400-h301/210214+st+dochdwys+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>The consecration of the church at Llandough, near this town, which has recently
been rebuilt and enlarged, took place yesterday (Thursday). A large and highly
respectable congregation was present, and it was with difficulty that
sufficient accommodation could be provided for the worshippers. The new church was
built in consequence of the old one being too small for the requirements of the
increasing population, and the rebuilding was principally brought about through
the exertions of the rector, the Rev. H. H. K. Rickards, and Mr. R. E. Spencer.
The new edifice has been erected on the east side of the old church. The design
belongs to the decorative period of Gothic architecture. Both externally and
internally it has a good effect. The chancel arch of the old church has been
restored and used in the new building. The church is built of Leckwith stone,
lined with bricks, and freestone is used for the windows, doorways, and
pillars. There is a conspicuous tower, and the church being on elevated ground,
it is visible from a great distance. The principal entrance is to the west, and
immediately opposite the altar, over which is a large stained memorial window,
to the late Rev. James Evans and his son the Rev. Charles Evans. Two fine
freestone pillars on either side support the aisle arches and open stained wood
roof. The side windows are also ornamented with stained glass. The pews are of
stained wood and without doors. In the course of time, should further accommodation
be required, this can be provided by taking down the west wall. The cost of the
re-building is £2,600, all of which has been subscribed with the exception of
£500. Mr. Fripp, of Bristol, was the architect, and Mr. David Jones, of
Penarth, the builder ...<p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRH8JSGBWe8b8JpKuyLEGXo6djxpSwDrLevwRx8h0EOpHEIzmLfsL35JhsQmZhwRxY79ldy9-lPLqterW7NOxKGyFMejQi7JjMe2Z2okQIFdjSpFWO42KpgDu89o3aOhOwynRPLPAX-kTH/s2048/210214+st+dochdwys+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRH8JSGBWe8b8JpKuyLEGXo6djxpSwDrLevwRx8h0EOpHEIzmLfsL35JhsQmZhwRxY79ldy9-lPLqterW7NOxKGyFMejQi7JjMe2Z2okQIFdjSpFWO42KpgDu89o3aOhOwynRPLPAX-kTH/w640-h384/210214+st+dochdwys+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">When I entered the church, my eye was
immediately drawn to the design of its brickwork, a stunning example of ‘the
decorative period of Gothic architecture’ referred to in the newspaper report.
This polychromatic brickwork is very similar to that inside Penarth’s St
Augustine’s Church, designed by renowned architect <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Butterfield" target="_blank">William Butterfield</a>, though
it is not believed to be Butterfield’s work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjXb1s6hFdhpkitvHKjCqQi46ntoNJTDRZZaQq1T4_hW4M3WS03s3-eHwaFRdcC8D2HA9w6JPUk5c2yGeh3gQ_clj6YbPiHnPnnn9y2PwaimN4xdyEzPuVxUQTwJ-lkz4SgmQnc4Hg6eDT/s2048/210214+st+dochdwys+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjXb1s6hFdhpkitvHKjCqQi46ntoNJTDRZZaQq1T4_hW4M3WS03s3-eHwaFRdcC8D2HA9w6JPUk5c2yGeh3gQ_clj6YbPiHnPnnn9y2PwaimN4xdyEzPuVxUQTwJ-lkz4SgmQnc4Hg6eDT/w640-h384/210214+st+dochdwys+%25284%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The church also features some beautiful stained
glass windows, including a 5-light traceried window in the west front wall, though
I didn’t have time to examine the many windows closely. And I’m sure there are
other features that will repay a second visit, when the current pandemic
restrictions allow that to happen.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUPEdipSFKHdtOySEMkDHIAUVbRsex5fm08e6vE15HUwFN7TPUX6dCwtZWolMJ6kbisBwVyxQlal0RZM9EzQAdFf-8lyFwHB1shkPJVHyLtzDNom4eNSY0e_pbWkJkEWYL4LLikFdBdZcg/s2048/210214+st+dochdwys+%25286%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1492" data-original-width="2048" height="466" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUPEdipSFKHdtOySEMkDHIAUVbRsex5fm08e6vE15HUwFN7TPUX6dCwtZWolMJ6kbisBwVyxQlal0RZM9EzQAdFf-8lyFwHB1shkPJVHyLtzDNom4eNSY0e_pbWkJkEWYL4LLikFdBdZcg/w640-h466/210214+st+dochdwys+%25286%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span><p></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-8523331362209329152021-02-07T17:00:00.011+00:002021-02-07T17:00:10.432+00:00Cardiff art : Cader Idris<p>I’ve sat and eaten my lunch on it, I’ve
sheltered in its lee from driving wind and rain, but it was only recently that
I finally found out more about this hulking artwork.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizxYXSBD2TTImpuH4-6iGXXFxa9ASh765O9UMEjFybz_-gX7VxIibOXh7MROMeX-JhaDrWOeyRzDWR5escUGG5qawuoMSDexp_wIDIUj_GFocHx-vZgZcoKwtNBW78bwAl9cX7llYvRbq6/s2048/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25286%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizxYXSBD2TTImpuH4-6iGXXFxa9ASh765O9UMEjFybz_-gX7VxIibOXh7MROMeX-JhaDrWOeyRzDWR5escUGG5qawuoMSDexp_wIDIUj_GFocHx-vZgZcoKwtNBW78bwAl9cX7llYvRbq6/w640-h384/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25286%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">This is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cader
Idris</i>, a sculpture that was first sited in the large square outside Cardiff
Central Station in 1999 but was moved ten years later to Cardiff Bay Wetlands
Reserve. As the English section of the inscription on the plaque adjacent to
the sculpture reads:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">The mountains,
lakes and valleys of Wales have inspired this sculpture, and in particular
Cader Idris, in Snowdonia.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36.0pt;"><span lang="EN-GB">Naturally, many
Welsh poets have found similar inspiration and it is those verses which reflect
this subject that have been chosen here. All of them are by Welsh poets and in
their original language, be it Welsh or English. The englyn is a unique verse
form characterised by the particular setting of the lines. Four englynion are
included in this selection, and the one by Rhys Dafis was especially composed
for this sculpture. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">At this point I was somewhat confused by
the references to poetry inscriptions as I hadn’t noticed any – more on that
below.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgji0zBIDxUzkubsmg5N70M-6iBNvVlFbnjOor8XpCIHiufSo5vZXg170I0ZEQF0gJ-ZahE4ObFOoJNptaMOHKX9t6Z-jPkRVUl1uItdhKcxn9iC3Bprv4fpYAfzkgbCF4sFl5mYFF3sSIt/s2048/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgji0zBIDxUzkubsmg5N70M-6iBNvVlFbnjOor8XpCIHiufSo5vZXg170I0ZEQF0gJ-ZahE4ObFOoJNptaMOHKX9t6Z-jPkRVUl1uItdhKcxn9iC3Bprv4fpYAfzkgbCF4sFl5mYFF3sSIt/w640-h384/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB">Cader
Idris</span></i><span lang="EN-GB"> was created by William Pye, a London-born
artist who studied sculpture at the Royal College of Art from 1961 to 1965, and
has since taught and exhibited his work in museums and art galleries around the
world. Although the design and dimensions of the Cardiff work were very much
influenced by the Welsh mountains, <a href="https://www.williampye.com/about" target="_blank">Pye writes</a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>that many of his other creations have been
inspired ‘by the extraordinary qualities of water and [he is] fascinated by the natural
laws of hydrostatics and how these can be manipulated.’ Some of you may have
seen the magnificent font he created for <a href="https://www.williampye.com/works/salisbury-cathedral-font" target="_blank">Salisbury Cathedral</a> in 2008,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>or perhaps you’ve seen the shimmering <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://www.williampye.com/works/slipstream" target="_blank">Slipstream</a></i> as you’ve passed through
Gatwick Airport’s north terminal,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>or you may have encountered <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chalice,_123_Buckingham_Palace_Road_SW1.jpg" target="_blank">Chalice</a></i>, within the precincts of 123
Buckingham Palace Road in London.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pye is a prolific creator and the <a href="https://www.williampye.com/works" target="_blank">list of his works</a> is a long one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjeN1MS78_MNc8dEPhhqchB_cBaAXYZh2tlMRZEM6FAHfaSPob7d71VuD72pIpUqdWCe513F0Vw3UyNjrpLnYYKf9IWn5GWU6buwIVj9h0Zqj7nvq3tX6MFagi2xiPk5_Gy-wFU1ETuJ8e/s2048/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjeN1MS78_MNc8dEPhhqchB_cBaAXYZh2tlMRZEM6FAHfaSPob7d71VuD72pIpUqdWCe513F0Vw3UyNjrpLnYYKf9IWn5GWU6buwIVj9h0Zqj7nvq3tX6MFagi2xiPk5_Gy-wFU1ETuJ8e/w640-h384/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Returning to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cader Idris</i>, <a href="https://www.williampye.com/works/cader-idris" target="_blank">Pye writes </a>that his inspiration came partly from a
painting of the mountain by Richard Wilson (1714-82), which Pye says ‘has been
a particular favourite of mine since my schooldays and holidays in Wales. This
painting has inspired me to create a number of sculptures, the Cader Idris
Series.’<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9i7gRUYPdnihPaXR8eXavMtiRZxcXpVHt6qOoF6M484bh3dpwDwxVDd0Uk7c4BIx96RP1KhvJTJF0sbBD91q1XJ-xen4fv7Dg_u8G8Zl6-tLi1bzILEzAboTMKt9l9Ocqo2tiPNOlOFoP/s2048/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9i7gRUYPdnihPaXR8eXavMtiRZxcXpVHt6qOoF6M484bh3dpwDwxVDd0Uk7c4BIx96RP1KhvJTJF0sbBD91q1XJ-xen4fv7Dg_u8G8Zl6-tLi1bzILEzAboTMKt9l9Ocqo2tiPNOlOFoP/w640-h384/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB">Cader
Idris</span></i><span lang="EN-GB"> is 13 feet (4 metres) tall and made from a
combination of Woodkirk sandstone and Welsh blue pennant slate, which the
sculptor explains as follows <a href="https://www.williampye.com/works/cader-idris " target="_blank">on his website</a>: ‘Water is inferred at the centre
of the structure where the darker pennant stone represents a cwm (circular
lake) at the foot of an escarpment.’ Pye goes on: ‘The bronze element of the
sculpture suggests a rock outcrop and is set with verses in Welsh and English,
all by Welsh poets.’</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqKZEURnvOrt2t6vSp4ZUeJDeDAsneB0Z-HUIQFaPVfme34HL5bHY877MS550kELDumzcQFTqzhs2_Cf2heEipbLA5ZprVJhFlelq27ctWhFPUogebzF0clDSXgdOevGsJo096q-haCBnO/s2048/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqKZEURnvOrt2t6vSp4ZUeJDeDAsneB0Z-HUIQFaPVfme34HL5bHY877MS550kELDumzcQFTqzhs2_Cf2heEipbLA5ZprVJhFlelq27ctWhFPUogebzF0clDSXgdOevGsJo096q-haCBnO/w640-h384/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25284%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Now I was even more confused, as it seems I
had missed both poetry inscriptions and the ‘bronze element’, so I returned to
the sculpture for another look. Still nothing. Then, after much searching, I
discovered that the artwork was altered when it was moved. When it was
located in central Cardiff, it had a small step built into one side and, more
importantly, there was an additional rectangular piece adjacent to the stone ‘mountain’,
a piece that was made of bronze and that had the poetry, the englyns, inscribed
on one side. (There’s a photo of the original artwork on the <a href="https://www.vads.ac.uk/digital/collection/PMSA/id/1412/" target="_blank">VADS website here</a>.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioQ7GRP_X2U8kOvag1_uo9zwYyrpOM3lclo_zdVXE9iq88DTETsozIuEQZd6RV4PB_igpsEJjYA5eFSdMFHmV7_j9MC42AuARJRwFTdlw-kHEbfpyIRy3-Kia8RCTPKPKqFWz1UgcTDFSx/s2048/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25285%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioQ7GRP_X2U8kOvag1_uo9zwYyrpOM3lclo_zdVXE9iq88DTETsozIuEQZd6RV4PB_igpsEJjYA5eFSdMFHmV7_j9MC42AuARJRwFTdlw-kHEbfpyIRy3-Kia8RCTPKPKqFWz1UgcTDFSx/w640-h384/210207+carder+idris+sculpture+%25285%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I haven’t been able to find any explanation
for why the artwork was altered. Nor have I discovered what happened to the ‘bronze
element’. To my eye, though <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Cader Idris</i>
still has a significant visual impact in its new setting, the piece has been diminished and much of its meaning obscured by the loss of the 'outcrop' and its poetry, and that
seems a great shame.</span></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-27227876955932301582021-02-04T15:58:00.000+00:002021-02-04T15:58:20.278+00:00Under my feet : Mt Stuart Ship Repairing Yard marker<p>Under my feet today is a marker I walked
over many times before, after deciding to pay more attention to what was ‘under
my feet’, I stopped to read what it said and take photographs.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI2soP4lI87AXT1en6qQ8FxAzKNPfCeNXv5TUZeYQTyjF7MBFCcLLU4jpdpG3KO3My854IQbH2O7svJsN9fr1WMdhb72SDYBMU96MfuWhZL3uRqThiRUrfaDxZLWGCA4co0jgdUQQ_6o3A/s2048/210204+Mt+Stuart+dock+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI2soP4lI87AXT1en6qQ8FxAzKNPfCeNXv5TUZeYQTyjF7MBFCcLLU4jpdpG3KO3My854IQbH2O7svJsN9fr1WMdhb72SDYBMU96MfuWhZL3uRqThiRUrfaDxZLWGCA4co0jgdUQQ_6o3A/w640-h384/210204+Mt+Stuart+dock+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The plaque reads, in English and Welsh: ‘The
granite setts show the line of the dockwall and the entrance to the former
Mount Stuart Ship Repairing Yard : Mae’r sets ithfaen yn dangos llinell mur y
doc a’r fynedfa i hen Iard Trwsio Llongau Mount Stuart’.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNjJv3Kmme0-gQMxxUiavidraSZTi4GZ65AvWgy2xVNYLHgH6QohiWxtbKA8HE1RY4_S7oq-RTNi0hx5CLgsUr8IgOOlVNLHlLaQb48k89JC2yBGHHtrkf2O0ly3po8b03ScxQi8Z-58Z3/s2532/210204+Mt+Stuart+dock+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1242" data-original-width="2532" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNjJv3Kmme0-gQMxxUiavidraSZTi4GZ65AvWgy2xVNYLHgH6QohiWxtbKA8HE1RY4_S7oq-RTNi0hx5CLgsUr8IgOOlVNLHlLaQb48k89JC2yBGHHtrkf2O0ly3po8b03ScxQi8Z-58Z3/w640-h314/210204+Mt+Stuart+dock+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Cardiff had long been a port but it wasn’t
until the early 19th century that it grew dramatically when the coal and iron
trades increased rapidly to service the needs of the industrial revolution. Huge
docks were constructed, starting with the Bute West Dock in 1839 and running
right through to the Queen Alexandra Dock in 1907. And, though Cardiff never
developed into an important shipbuilding location, it did become a major hub
for ship repairing companies.</span> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">In 1843, the <a href="https://www.angelfire.com/ga/BobSanders/CDFIND.html " target="_blank">Batchelor brothers</a>, John and Sidney, moved from Newport to
Cardiff to set up a ship repair yard. From their initial location on the banks
of the River Taff, they moved six years later to the West Dock and then, several
years after that, they opened the Mount Stuart Graving Dock. After the
Batchelors’ operation went into liquidation in 1873, their business was
eventually sold to Sir John Gunn, and the company became the Mount Stuart Ship
Building, Graving Docks, and Engineering Company.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiny959kgIkT3tUyXSaoSjnYQnTlgn7KYhXtCk4AHJal4JmSYYBYvj5KFZ2Iqpkf21Tkhk9LHrKuWaYzNOvXsiEDyyK4XMzGShUtgcwy2SoyxR3_OFT8Z8zFDcfFUEBdg5eDxuXNft4gV8/s1449/210204+Mt+Stuart+dock+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="556" data-original-width="1449" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiny959kgIkT3tUyXSaoSjnYQnTlgn7KYhXtCk4AHJal4JmSYYBYvj5KFZ2Iqpkf21Tkhk9LHrKuWaYzNOvXsiEDyyK4XMzGShUtgcwy2SoyxR3_OFT8Z8zFDcfFUEBdg5eDxuXNft4gV8/w640-h246/210204+Mt+Stuart+dock+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The 1882 sketch of the Mountstuart Dry Dock
and Engineering Co’s Works, above left, is from William Turner’s publication <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Port of Cardiff</i> *. The photograph, above
right, shows the three docks in use at a much later date, probably sometime in
the mid 1900s (the image is not dated) <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">**</b>.
Advertisements for the Mount Stuart company, dating from 1891-92 and 1895-6,
can be seen on the <a href="https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Mountstuart_Shipbuilding" target="_blank">Grace’s Guide to British Industrial History website</a>.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span>As you can see from the photograph above right,
there are three docks, ranging in length from 430 feet (131 metres) to 543 feet
(165 metres): <a href="https://coflein.gov.uk/en/site/34267/details/mount-stuart-dry-docks-cardiff-docks" target="_blank">Coflein</a>, the online database for the National Monuments Record of
Wales, gives the exact measurements, and details of how these changed over
time. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">After the Cardiff Bay Barrage was completed
in 2001 and the bay changed from a tidal harbour to a freshwater lake, the
three Mount Stuart docks were flooded. Two remain empty but dock number 3
contains pontoons, used to moor small boats. The photographs below show dock
number one as it currently looks.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAH9phmY-3SwFXTad8c2xwxyc-Th7EVuUz7_zs0pwnxWrrO646SfUUD64pPKK1uMQiZYmwAW0JNj0wusVN8pvNmFzzwebiaHPZZ0FBZb-fGWTO0HR_UAL4uCoWMisKAeVm_K3SrP1HI8Yj/s2910/210204+Mt+Stuart+dock+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1081" data-original-width="2910" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAH9phmY-3SwFXTad8c2xwxyc-Th7EVuUz7_zs0pwnxWrrO646SfUUD64pPKK1uMQiZYmwAW0JNj0wusVN8pvNmFzzwebiaHPZZ0FBZb-fGWTO0HR_UAL4uCoWMisKAeVm_K3SrP1HI8Yj/w640-h238/210204+Mt+Stuart+dock+%25284%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span lang="EN-GB">* </span></b>Image from Wikimedia Commons: Dated 1882. Accession no: British Library HMNTS 10369.cc.8. Image
extracted from page 110 of The Port of Cardiff, by TURNER, William -
Author of Custom Houses, an out-of-copyright book. Original held and digitised
by the British Library. <a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/TURNER%281882%29_MOUNTSTUART_Dry_Dock_and_Engineering_Co%C2%B4s._Work.jpg">https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/TURNER%281882%29_MOUNTSTUART_Dry_Dock_and_Engineering_Co%C2%B4s._Work.jpg</a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span lang="EN-GB">**</span></b><span lang="EN-GB"> Image from Wikimedia Commons: <a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Mount_Stuart_dry_docks_%28451103725%29.jpg">https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Mount_Stuart_dry_docks_%28451103725%29.jpg</a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Note re the term ‘graving’: I was not
familiar with this word when I started researching the Mount Stuart plaque so
was fascinated to learn its meaning. If you’re interested, there’s a short
explanation on the Wikimapia entry for <a href="http://wikimapia.org/23773909/Mount-Stuart-Graving-Dock-3" target="_blank">Mount Stuart Graving Dock 3</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-75767669582600785732021-01-31T19:13:00.001+00:002021-01-31T19:13:15.775+00:00House numbers, 11 to 20<p>In my previous blog, <i><a href="https://sconzani.blogspot.com/2021/01/house-numbers-1-to-10.html" target="_blank">House numbers, 1 to 10</a></i>, I covered subjects like the design, layout, and materials used to create
the numbers people have attached to their houses. This time I want to look at
the back story of house numbering, while also displaying more of the attractive
numbers I’ve found during my local exercise walks.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvcJ__RbzhYXvdMtiYxXMMowkRffdvjeqb26Y8veB-tMPOZMNW2dqnxgiItzzqEUpQRBHXVvRfPjQb21xSDBmGQIQBq2k_3FQJalYbGabg2qYhunkH7rpgd3DKb9oEf8tCTsIdro62HFT/s2527/210131+house+numbers+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1245" data-original-width="2527" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkvcJ__RbzhYXvdMtiYxXMMowkRffdvjeqb26Y8veB-tMPOZMNW2dqnxgiItzzqEUpQRBHXVvRfPjQb21xSDBmGQIQBq2k_3FQJalYbGabg2qYhunkH7rpgd3DKb9oEf8tCTsIdro62HFT/w640-h316/210131+house+numbers+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">As is surely obvious, giving a house a
number and a street a name makes it much easier to locate that house, yet house
numbering does not exist everywhere in our world. In some places, houses are
identified by name rather than number; in other places, they have both name and
street number; and, where numbers of residents are low, neither system exists.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpty6tUkDtyO2ewM_1c3cJYD7Gaz7hBSi-EfHbek-iCCBaH6TiFpUkCo90S6lCXFIx42PFvB5RdaA1cBOftRYP0tqhyphenhyphenZRseb5cJQprdQ0TA-p788bIt6WLzbzMgPz-s8f_mruzVmH3O1-J/s2048/210131+house+numbers+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpty6tUkDtyO2ewM_1c3cJYD7Gaz7hBSi-EfHbek-iCCBaH6TiFpUkCo90S6lCXFIx42PFvB5RdaA1cBOftRYP0tqhyphenhyphenZRseb5cJQprdQ0TA-p788bIt6WLzbzMgPz-s8f_mruzVmH3O1-J/w640-h384/210131+house+numbers+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4tFfkWAQF9IdnseT_91ivLUsZbhTMVc6ljs1ekgCD5wG8kc9mba1mE4Y1X0yrCFsURYNVpUL9-6CCjUWBF25z7Y43ne5cft2yczSeGUW5kl2lIcZnxb-lld9WN6aGkZ8Eqi6xEXxaSgLN/s2332/210131+house+numbers+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1141" data-original-width="2332" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4tFfkWAQF9IdnseT_91ivLUsZbhTMVc6ljs1ekgCD5wG8kc9mba1mE4Y1X0yrCFsURYNVpUL9-6CCjUWBF25z7Y43ne5cft2yczSeGUW5kl2lIcZnxb-lld9WN6aGkZ8Eqi6xEXxaSgLN/w640-h314/210131+house+numbers+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">To add to the potential for confusion, even
where numbering systems are used, there are variations in those systems. Some
streets may have odd-numbered houses on one side of the street and even numbers
on the opposite side but there are also places where houses were only planned
for one side of a street and so those numbers are consecutive. When the other
side of the street was subsequently built on, the numbers were not changed to
an odds-and-evens system – they simply continued in consecutive order along the
other side of the street.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidQA97KKjABLRo5_xZZYW6nX3mQ7Ba8aIKehyphenhyphena8Un31IYobLlKP4pgTy8QVIjKDSWgOFbo8DBgNDpz6WyvwxQE33sNFLfi7y6kN8F6bBeatgmNFn_iUhr0OdeitQ5St82cJ4yUYya0cfN7/s2048/210131+house+numbers+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidQA97KKjABLRo5_xZZYW6nX3mQ7Ba8aIKehyphenhyphena8Un31IYobLlKP4pgTy8QVIjKDSWgOFbo8DBgNDpz6WyvwxQE33sNFLfi7y6kN8F6bBeatgmNFn_iUhr0OdeitQ5St82cJ4yUYya0cfN7/w640-h384/210131+house+numbers+%25284%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">As for the history of house numbering,
Wikipedia has a seemingly <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_numbering" target="_blank">well-researched article</a> that
gives 1512 as the earliest known numbering system, which was in a suburb of
Paris, France, but it was until the 18th century that official numbering
systems were introduced in various locations across Europe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpKXdahFGil4FiBEC4UyYIP45nq37O-i071z9yXmrRn-I0kKRnrj8RXRIHfGMl_wYjhnt6iwSvyDRBUHUh0Smibxjc6S5Vv5hNeNQEFUwSY04TUAyt84DOBxvI1RbhJbKBYcC48Ze97EDM/s2048/210131+house+numbers+%25285%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpKXdahFGil4FiBEC4UyYIP45nq37O-i071z9yXmrRn-I0kKRnrj8RXRIHfGMl_wYjhnt6iwSvyDRBUHUh0Smibxjc6S5Vv5hNeNQEFUwSY04TUAyt84DOBxvI1RbhJbKBYcC48Ze97EDM/w640-h384/210131+house+numbers+%25285%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">In Britain, according to a post on <a href="https://postalheritage.wordpress.com/2011/08/16/house-numbering-in-the-uk/" target="_blank">The British Postal Museum and Archive blog</a>, the first known instance of house numbering
dates from around 1708, when Edward Hatton’s two-volume publication <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">A New View of London, or An Ample Account of
that City in Eight Sections</i> stated that the houses in Prescott Street,
Goodman’s Fields were identified by number rather than name. That seems to have
been a local idiosyncrasy, however, and it wasn’t until 1766 that two Acts of
Parliament were passed that included house numbering, though only in two very
specific locations, the Borough of Southwark and the City of London (Act 6 Geo
III c24 and Act 6 Geo III c26, both dated 1765 but not enacted until the
following year – see comments by John Copeland and others on the British Postal
Museum blog referenced above). And even that legislation may not have made
numbering compulsory – an article on the <a href="https://www.maps.thehunthouse.com/Streets/Naming_and_numbering_the_streets_of_London.htm" target="_blank">maps.thehunthouse.com website</a> questions the wording of the legislation: the
use of the words ‘shall and may’ rather than ‘must’ may indicate that usage of
the numbering system was optional.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilh000EkSCkgWy3O-Ps9PMe8lrTfZx9oI_refM1pkKiOg_yXqwftprfwiQeCv4g9myu-DeVaaEbP1mZW9ZapaLTCh9dY_p9se6cOGqPBfydn3hkX4t5pwIdzu2_DEJZLuS1LQqsBoElqcp/s2048/210131+house+numbers+%25286%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilh000EkSCkgWy3O-Ps9PMe8lrTfZx9oI_refM1pkKiOg_yXqwftprfwiQeCv4g9myu-DeVaaEbP1mZW9ZapaLTCh9dY_p9se6cOGqPBfydn3hkX4t5pwIdzu2_DEJZLuS1LQqsBoElqcp/w640-h384/210131+house+numbers+%25286%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvijGwpAduPKdctDEaO3qNI6XxfEUe-aYIMDrzcZclfqod843RMqlJGWAFW7VHrOET_4ONantqxq87UdtVdxxQ0yw52DUPLHOHPjpdDbFSgBE5rOFhxHQEI9LXfer4k0dhcZy7NdhkXqYY/s3116/210131+house+numbers+%25287%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1009" data-original-width="3116" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvijGwpAduPKdctDEaO3qNI6XxfEUe-aYIMDrzcZclfqod843RMqlJGWAFW7VHrOET_4ONantqxq87UdtVdxxQ0yw52DUPLHOHPjpdDbFSgBE5rOFhxHQEI9LXfer4k0dhcZy7NdhkXqYY/w640-h208/210131+house+numbers+%25287%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Although other towns and cities no doubt recognised
the advantages of, and adopted, similar numbering systems in the latter part of
the 18th century, it wasn’t until 1855 that the Metropolitan Management Act
decreed a more comprehensive and all-encompassing system of controlling and
regulating the names of streets and the numbers of houses.<br /></span><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOAuZikItdwBqX_GnId5kDIWFqV8UEZnXOUXrAq5s1-6rUsobhj04aOOIkjaymE3s2osogshyU-7ZHMv4DoAmemFiDFP70mqTCm8vGqDpLE6qy3vnbjJuBRLFLfeSzgAhKu2v9Nz0RAGky/s2530/210131+house+numbers+%25288%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1243" data-original-width="2530" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOAuZikItdwBqX_GnId5kDIWFqV8UEZnXOUXrAq5s1-6rUsobhj04aOOIkjaymE3s2osogshyU-7ZHMv4DoAmemFiDFP70mqTCm8vGqDpLE6qy3vnbjJuBRLFLfeSzgAhKu2v9Nz0RAGky/w640-h314/210131+house+numbers+%25288%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">No doubt it took some time to instigate the
changes this Act stipulated, time to design and manufacture street and house signage,
to allocate and map logical numbers, to inform everyone of the new labels and
encourage their use. But, as the new numbering systems came into effect, I’m
sure postal delivery workers collectively heaved a massive sigh of relief as
their task of finding the correct locations for their deliveries was progressively
made much more straight forward.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxTFm32CEJ746u3TCduvTKkmBX7xaWhhUU-XbA-Nx4eIIJl8cLqyjfboscZqpsAZGe0MWD64H4NJ5CaBTf9IlWVvLOM3dWC7LT1pmar-DVip_zr5L6HxE-LQWnDTIJReGdOWG31hN0hkld/s2048/210131+house+numbers+%25289%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxTFm32CEJ746u3TCduvTKkmBX7xaWhhUU-XbA-Nx4eIIJl8cLqyjfboscZqpsAZGe0MWD64H4NJ5CaBTf9IlWVvLOM3dWC7LT1pmar-DVip_zr5L6HxE-LQWnDTIJReGdOWG31hN0hkld/w640-h384/210131+house+numbers+%25289%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGnY7XoC2RXG_78SNVlpT7pQWfKVX93LCOUwt5KAlY-WXLSfHhNaLPQhPoRlMRYAVAkTADObvupiN9bkvGkQitaUQWPR2IF9-0IYwQ6-C4Rat3Qnqq23E_SrbhftI3xz2H2MkH2Sm4qSuc/s2048/210131+house+numbers+%252810%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGnY7XoC2RXG_78SNVlpT7pQWfKVX93LCOUwt5KAlY-WXLSfHhNaLPQhPoRlMRYAVAkTADObvupiN9bkvGkQitaUQWPR2IF9-0IYwQ6-C4Rat3Qnqq23E_SrbhftI3xz2H2MkH2Sm4qSuc/w640-h384/210131+house+numbers+%252810%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span><p></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-3557565570579670032021-01-20T10:46:00.000+00:002021-01-20T10:46:41.310+00:00Cardiff art : Celtic Ring<p>My last blog, <i><a href="https://sconzani.blogspot.com/2021/01/under-my-feet-key.html" target="_blank">Under my feet: a key</a></i>, was an introduction to today’s post on the
public artwork that surrounds that ‘key’, which is both a name plate for the
artwork and a waymarker to locate the beginning of the Taff Trail. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2kvN6CnRXEDCjFhODv65DD_rpAz80-qkqX08AqV6tM3R-joV8iFwq-FSu_1KNCIGhbSRXyrycakqDUvqnkH8uvZZ3SGe-3ZwBdObYu1bmEqF1whkuCC4i6azHjiYjAM7Lnkqy8zLFHwMr/s2048/210120+celtic+ring+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2kvN6CnRXEDCjFhODv65DD_rpAz80-qkqX08AqV6tM3R-joV8iFwq-FSu_1KNCIGhbSRXyrycakqDUvqnkH8uvZZ3SGe-3ZwBdObYu1bmEqF1whkuCC4i6azHjiYjAM7Lnkqy8zLFHwMr/w640-h384/210120+celtic+ring+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a><br /><br />The Cardiff Bay Development Corporation (CBDC)
was established in 1987 to regenerate the docklands, which had by that time
become a wasteland of disused docks and abandoned buildings. As part of their
regeneration plan, the CBDC commissioned a series of public artworks to complement
the many new building programmes: the <i>Celtic
Ring</i> is one of those commissioned pieces.</o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinOwZ-ueYomY2fYpXW0RuArD4orNAyzyOoBdWc-3sdeVfloBE6NAfKF-jotoTg1bA2baVN3k54iX5n4e_xfOGY7hV3Vao6px6L6jfw0oJ66KqPNHvR0F5eAfwfrG0Wd64R0oyQauVFN5nq/s2048/210120+celtic+ring+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinOwZ-ueYomY2fYpXW0RuArD4orNAyzyOoBdWc-3sdeVfloBE6NAfKF-jotoTg1bA2baVN3k54iX5n4e_xfOGY7hV3Vao6px6L6jfw0oJ66KqPNHvR0F5eAfwfrG0Wd64R0oyQauVFN5nq/w640-h384/210120+celtic+ring+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaPYcKcz-IzbANvAceIxbWnHYlAl3mqIJXa3Kg9ECbrRF2Ze0mwMcX7gJBMn9Sj5rL3hX5YeHiWiHOizo0_Qo6oL0DW_0cXhYb0v6tJNYz8rFU3JFSTKC7Wo5BlsnTzWN062XDvuxu-iXu/s2048/210120+celtic+ring+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaPYcKcz-IzbANvAceIxbWnHYlAl3mqIJXa3Kg9ECbrRF2Ze0mwMcX7gJBMn9Sj5rL3hX5YeHiWiHOizo0_Qo6oL0DW_0cXhYb0v6tJNYz8rFU3JFSTKC7Wo5BlsnTzWN062XDvuxu-iXu/w640-h384/210120+celtic+ring+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">It was created by sculptor Harvey Hood in
1993. Though born in Staffordshire and educated both in Birmingham (at the
Birmingham College of Art) and London (at the Royal College of Art), Hood has
spent much of his adult life in Wales. After completing his MA in London, he
moved to the Cardiff College of Art, where he eventually progressed to Head of
the Sculpture Department. Though now retired from university teaching, and from
his 30 years as director of the Berlanderi Sculpture Workshop near Raglan, Hood
continues to create amazing works of sculpture. He has exhibited both
nationally and internationally, and his work is held in public and private
collections around the world.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3DuuOYqI8zZFiDreZfwm4mOt9TbOBR3gEsKPi1SCU0A3ZiLyTH2UX4dgfRdabejxSkavd8C16Yt95yjhRkWVbehbrorRoN48fS16ncA4k5juqlMKiTh5Kk-nkV77QXTcEb3T3GEzbXWNs/s2048/210120+celtic+ring+%25285%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3DuuOYqI8zZFiDreZfwm4mOt9TbOBR3gEsKPi1SCU0A3ZiLyTH2UX4dgfRdabejxSkavd8C16Yt95yjhRkWVbehbrorRoN48fS16ncA4k5juqlMKiTh5Kk-nkV77QXTcEb3T3GEzbXWNs/w640-h384/210120+celtic+ring+%25285%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkDrgPfvtPv4yFJD9FfN42i4-Bvl9v2cWijd4PeCze71X7gMqnMkKtmJN6ULXyONVoESBynv8Zgi56AT1HW4W0dLA8ybmV4D8F7WHDRECAv1n7uhb9LIZKLzBdzhSuINy7Q4hVsg_TZ_4A/s2048/210120+celtic+ring+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkDrgPfvtPv4yFJD9FfN42i4-Bvl9v2cWijd4PeCze71X7gMqnMkKtmJN6ULXyONVoESBynv8Zgi56AT1HW4W0dLA8ybmV4D8F7WHDRECAv1n7uhb9LIZKLzBdzhSuINy7Q4hVsg_TZ_4A/w640-h384/210120+celtic+ring+%25284%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">On <a href="http://harveyhood.blogspot.com/2011/11/celtic-ring-cardiff-bay.html" target="_blank">Harvey Hood’s personal website</a> there is
an excellent blog post that documents, using many fascinating images, the
process involved in the creation of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Celtic
Ring</i>. It moves from Hood’s sketching his initial ideas on the shores of the
Bay before the Barrage was built, to the intriguing process of manufacturing
the artwork, from clay mould to plaster cast to fibreglass to bronze.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmYLTjQ41gQcAwN-Lg5k5r1l-MHS_UVuejuyXbYOeIbdfrYDLgvFJ2yOTqLQNTDjUoVaHaBGYn85YKd7Rsh6GTdKTAWE3HS-GQvHVkDkb1BID6aj4eZv3g4PL1xkTTMGQYsQnmvYNmLDgH/s2048/210120+celtic+ring+%25287%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmYLTjQ41gQcAwN-Lg5k5r1l-MHS_UVuejuyXbYOeIbdfrYDLgvFJ2yOTqLQNTDjUoVaHaBGYn85YKd7Rsh6GTdKTAWE3HS-GQvHVkDkb1BID6aj4eZv3g4PL1xkTTMGQYsQnmvYNmLDgH/w640-h384/210120+celtic+ring+%25287%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2vy541qyVbhZfpz5g0YWKtjXTSf15EhuXftWYWJHIqypVLkfTDp6EbY2YJIxIp63SJF-3RLPrAQY5ZAagw3ww3DZ1SR1L3zy_8XSdkM2Dob-iD_EkhxOk5rdkBP5bShs-clzwNvCAp3bM/s2048/210120+celtic+ring+%25286%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2vy541qyVbhZfpz5g0YWKtjXTSf15EhuXftWYWJHIqypVLkfTDp6EbY2YJIxIp63SJF-3RLPrAQY5ZAagw3ww3DZ1SR1L3zy_8XSdkM2Dob-iD_EkhxOk5rdkBP5bShs-clzwNvCAp3bM/w640-h384/210120+celtic+ring+%25286%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">As you can see from my photos of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ring</i>’s interior, its surface is textured
with many features relating to the maritime and industrial environment in which
it is located. As well as references to local landmarks like the Norwegian
Church, the former Hamadryad Hospital ship, and several of the local docks, there
are seafaring instruments and tidal charts. It is a remarkable artwork that has
stood well the test of time since its creation almost thirty years ago.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ8rVrzNlZ08TxGIT13OqivLdc2LAYThqM6qc_t6fvkjf0mm151Ol8NIp4prHq8kSokK3tTOG2ru3y24xVh8fvETpezwmRojutGSbyTbsVra9-xd2loaGfXnrOePbCE6kBdud3v9DKQmh5/s2048/210120+celtic+ring+%25288%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ8rVrzNlZ08TxGIT13OqivLdc2LAYThqM6qc_t6fvkjf0mm151Ol8NIp4prHq8kSokK3tTOG2ru3y24xVh8fvETpezwmRojutGSbyTbsVra9-xd2loaGfXnrOePbCE6kBdud3v9DKQmh5/w640-h384/210120+celtic+ring+%25288%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span><p></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-82738950667598917882021-01-12T11:00:00.000+00:002021-01-12T11:00:22.722+00:00Under my feet: a key<p>Well, it looks like a key to me, though it’s
really a name marker for the <i>Celtic Ring</i>,
the public artwork that surrounds it. The inscription on the key reads: ‘To
mark the beginning of the Taff Trail to Brecon. Cardiff Bay Art Trust. Celtic
Ring 1993 by Harvey Hood. Commissioned by CBDC’.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnaUe8EJGgXQUAGkLOvhpS9MT4rWq4Rr5Ytzd0-oRRry1abh3SYkVknpDjD251Uzpitxc1oXrSG9Ptqywn68WcFqdjdqNyotFKZOQLvzQ2ghuWcRV1WU5y4-WGkwluJF9nS8mI07wzaTgJ/s2048/210112+Taff+Trail+key+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnaUe8EJGgXQUAGkLOvhpS9MT4rWq4Rr5Ytzd0-oRRry1abh3SYkVknpDjD251Uzpitxc1oXrSG9Ptqywn68WcFqdjdqNyotFKZOQLvzQ2ghuWcRV1WU5y4-WGkwluJF9nS8mI07wzaTgJ/w640-h384/210112+Taff+Trail+key+%25281%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">I’ll write about the artwork in my next
post but today’s post is about what’s under my feet, that key. It can be found
in Cardiff Bay, on the boardwalk near the water at the bottom of Roald Dahl
Plass. As well as a name plate for the artwork, the key is a waymarker for the
55-mile Taff Trail, a walking and cycling route that runs from this spot all
the way to the town of Brecon, in the Brecon Beacons National Park. Although
the Trail is named after the River Taff, and does run alongside the river for
some of its route, it also veers aside to follow former railway tracks and
forestry roads in some places. To find out more detail about the Taff Trail,
its route, its history and tales, check out the excellent <a href="https://mytafftrail.co.uk/index.php" target="_blank">My Taff Trail website</a>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguQpEv7xSB7yIF39Ci05vNFPMaeQsWohw_WyYt6OqafzH-12Qctn3M_pP_EWfJMo4SUP3F7JsBpBNIOakIZR0Fmuhs4X7MeSD-rvUGyCqh6ppTA4-7rsDw6WL6VNLQDGcVsSUnD8aMV_2C/s2048/210112+Taff+Trail+key+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguQpEv7xSB7yIF39Ci05vNFPMaeQsWohw_WyYt6OqafzH-12Qctn3M_pP_EWfJMo4SUP3F7JsBpBNIOakIZR0Fmuhs4X7MeSD-rvUGyCqh6ppTA4-7rsDw6WL6VNLQDGcVsSUnD8aMV_2C/w640-h384/210112+Taff+Trail+key+%25282%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Although Covid-19 restrictions mean it is
not currently possible to walk all the Taff Trail, you may be able to walk
parts of the route that are local to where you live as part of your daily
exercise regime. That also applies to cyclists, as the Trail is part of the
National Cycle Network. In more densely populated areas, the Trail can be busy,
so please be aware of and show consideration for other users.</span></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-24242730978388864902021-01-03T17:00:00.002+00:002021-01-20T10:56:15.592+00:00House numbers, 1 to 10<p>While I was walking my local streets in
search of nicely decorated Christmas doors for my earlier blog <i><a href="https://sconzani.blogspot.com/2020/12/doors-christmas-wreaths.html" target="_blank">Doors: Christmas wreaths</a></i>, I couldn’t
help but notice other aspects of the house fronts, in particular the door
knockers and house numbers. And so this is the first of what will probably be
several blog posts about what I discovered.</p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg15YnQYcm8HfkBjyLtxwvl9Ma_rM5GQQHNS6_vO4ddHNIQ1l593b0xgnmUXKWn5bR-RAU0ukw5YAK-qxN1S3EGpqUMa4m9AhwyljnyUkHQKPLOhyphenhyphenPTylz6aZ-paotTBa657CjcefQ2cDQT/s2048/210103+house+numbers+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1366" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg15YnQYcm8HfkBjyLtxwvl9Ma_rM5GQQHNS6_vO4ddHNIQ1l593b0xgnmUXKWn5bR-RAU0ukw5YAK-qxN1S3EGpqUMa4m9AhwyljnyUkHQKPLOhyphenhyphenPTylz6aZ-paotTBa657CjcefQ2cDQT/w640-h426/210103+house+numbers+1.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Though house numbers in a development might
start out standardised, many later get changed as the new owners decide to put
their own stamp on their new home. And it’s quite amazing how varied these
house numbers can be.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3r5RX4yCM2AmNVHOzm3jpgNy0r9gAdgWL8pywxC36udvyKcDFtB7kqsO3ZQOfQXYP9JubyH6yQpUavX0Md6ybJfGn6ZtXzWq_07djMvzNHuzJ38YeCk-_8kNfBlhNauyKManN1XuWsQgQ/s3123/210103+house+numbers+2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1007" data-original-width="3123" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3r5RX4yCM2AmNVHOzm3jpgNy0r9gAdgWL8pywxC36udvyKcDFtB7kqsO3ZQOfQXYP9JubyH6yQpUavX0Md6ybJfGn6ZtXzWq_07djMvzNHuzJ38YeCk-_8kNfBlhNauyKManN1XuWsQgQ/w640-h206/210103+house+numbers+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9ezFSnn_nLkxIHYspwAq8_Vv7H8fxcaHIL1InbHjEpwundKNqvfX1VsqW2puBAhL6KunlECpKPkPokS33vBkFRnsA_nR6ulWV7S55aWvoGRy06MUuKW8SswVKjHVsYPp5Fz5Q5Jr5m-m/s2535/210103+house+numbers+3.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1241" data-original-width="2535" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ9ezFSnn_nLkxIHYspwAq8_Vv7H8fxcaHIL1InbHjEpwundKNqvfX1VsqW2puBAhL6KunlECpKPkPokS33vBkFRnsA_nR6ulWV7S55aWvoGRy06MUuKW8SswVKjHVsYPp5Fz5Q5Jr5m-m/w640-h314/210103+house+numbers+3.jpg" width="640" /></a><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">First, the design. This might be contemporary
or traditional; modern or rustic; off-the-shelf or customised. The range of
colours on offer is almost infinite but other considerations include your
choice of font, whether the numbers are underlined or not, in standard or bold
type, or perhaps you prefer script. </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh7L5qRXOL2SvHUnBeb4IGB0EPDTp04g1FU_9QKL0aMsu1i0KSynEODTo08JBFgBlGffbBIyBm24A5wRnCzL8OY4g_pdJnLq_912E0LOMj-TYE1KpkxMVTMoyPFMhXL2TY6l7TfUPZs1yx/s2048/210103+house+numbers+4.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh7L5qRXOL2SvHUnBeb4IGB0EPDTp04g1FU_9QKL0aMsu1i0KSynEODTo08JBFgBlGffbBIyBm24A5wRnCzL8OY4g_pdJnLq_912E0LOMj-TYE1KpkxMVTMoyPFMhXL2TY6l7TfUPZs1yx/w640-h426/210103+house+numbers+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal">You might choose simply to have numbers on
their own, though most house owners seem to prefer their numbers on a plaque,
perhaps for ease of attachment. But should that plaque be square, rectangular,
round, oval or even wedge shaped? The plaque might be flat or 3-dimensional;
floating or out-standing or hanging. It might even be illuminated for ease of
night-time viewing, and the numbers could be powder-coated or polished, engraved
or laser-cut. So many choices!</p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhLWN4cKBT2uN9QWzqFEjZyfzFC-lhPE5uidwsxUg3NSdbCXwl-OJvJ8E20b952_QgGzvi3sp1vngOhwMbPjZsuKhNt7zHpZAY8XOnGf8ErSzsDNsf22H-Xl-e7jQgOknNrTZ9rdUGsb3T/s2551/210103+house+numbers+5a.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1232" data-original-width="2551" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhLWN4cKBT2uN9QWzqFEjZyfzFC-lhPE5uidwsxUg3NSdbCXwl-OJvJ8E20b952_QgGzvi3sp1vngOhwMbPjZsuKhNt7zHpZAY8XOnGf8ErSzsDNsf22H-Xl-e7jQgOknNrTZ9rdUGsb3T/w640-h310/210103+house+numbers+5a.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0GtLvpRjXDdOiDXdB4S-sr091wx-F1myG9hWOERFSiLjj7YHEAsY3TGjrZiWHVlK3wNlxYwu85z1sVrFzhsElzqgvgZphSVQfboaDgrcbsFC0dXU0iE6ZvXL7rkhi2PmSvv9ReJLKFbqM/s2635/210103+house+numbers+5b.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1194" data-original-width="2635" height="290" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0GtLvpRjXDdOiDXdB4S-sr091wx-F1myG9hWOERFSiLjj7YHEAsY3TGjrZiWHVlK3wNlxYwu85z1sVrFzhsElzqgvgZphSVQfboaDgrcbsFC0dXU0iE6ZvXL7rkhi2PmSvv9ReJLKFbqM/w640-h290/210103+house+numbers+5b.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">And rather than <span style="color: black; mso-themecolor: text1;">choosing to have a simple number on your plaque, you
might perhaps add the name of your dwelling, if it has one, or personalise your
plaque by including a motif that reflects your interests or hobbies or career
choice or location (you breed dogs so add a hound; you’re a birder so add an
owl; you’re a gardener and choose your favourite flowers; you’re a champion
ice-skater – see my photo of house number 5; you’re proudly Welsh so include a
dragon; you’re a farmer so add a tractor).<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXYQfcgDQvjOTYVMuLBytsf-8ftQX0yf_8ZjepVOBYhR0OyKWhBUGu3pvbhJhG5s-MlveB8VgRNbrK7AtlglOjvv-AM0ulr-9EZ3xesw6c_1Rlyx-Tp6vWypdfeBKNweyheFhyiRd4BGA2/s2048/210103+house+numbers+6.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXYQfcgDQvjOTYVMuLBytsf-8ftQX0yf_8ZjepVOBYhR0OyKWhBUGu3pvbhJhG5s-MlveB8VgRNbrK7AtlglOjvv-AM0ulr-9EZ3xesw6c_1Rlyx-Tp6vWypdfeBKNweyheFhyiRd4BGA2/w640-h426/210103+house+numbers+6.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">If you’re a creative person, rather than
choosing a store-bought house number, you might like to make your own numbered
plaque, perhaps in <span style="color: black; mso-themecolor: text1;">mosaics, or
painted wood, or even grow ‘living’ numbers (similar to the concept of a living
wall, but in the shape of numbers – google images for “moss numbers” to see
some examples).</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; mso-themecolor: text1;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyM7k_Oyy3-oKaSItqpoxLxB3iMyxHYJbXLsWA5EkJs-RtMp6xQWWkJIB1hri2pmOPVW80JqUsBVJYMBpvPQLxaZ0K9RBJIfmTD8MQA8xSh2EZcLGtunxe1ZhWycC5bqWcp8H1_BBdTyb6/s2566/210103+house+numbers+7.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1226" data-original-width="2566" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyM7k_Oyy3-oKaSItqpoxLxB3iMyxHYJbXLsWA5EkJs-RtMp6xQWWkJIB1hri2pmOPVW80JqUsBVJYMBpvPQLxaZ0K9RBJIfmTD8MQA8xSh2EZcLGtunxe1ZhWycC5bqWcp8H1_BBdTyb6/w640-h306/210103+house+numbers+7.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="color: black; mso-themecolor: text1;">If
you decide to purchase your numbers and/or plaque, there is a wide range of
materials to choose from. These include but are not limited to</span><span lang="EN-GB"> wood; metals like chrome, stainless steel, aluminium, and brass; slate
and other stones like anthracite, granite, marble, and Portland limestone; glass,
acrylic, and ceramic materials; and, for those who want to be eco-friendly, there
is even a product called eco-stone, a ‘new composite material made from the
fused glass from recycled televisions, recycled vitrified porcelain and
recovered waste glaze from tile manufacturing’. (The <a href="https://www.housenameplate.co.uk/ecostone-environmentally-friendly-left-hand-wedge-3-digit-house-number-uwn3l.html " target="_blank">House Nameplate Company website</a> explains more about this product, and includes photos and a video
showing how the product is made.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmfv2H2GvWp1bAdW43VgKqfdqB5tgRxADGN1EnrCJSI0T6qowB8KJ484aW2bp_ATHcm2vn-wnW6F-tXFDXuQ5oS8Ba8w6k1wanQlclck4LUoQsanwrQ4Hi7hkloWOSQ3KZQwfKwCGYmHsE/s2048/210103+house+numbers+8.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmfv2H2GvWp1bAdW43VgKqfdqB5tgRxADGN1EnrCJSI0T6qowB8KJ484aW2bp_ATHcm2vn-wnW6F-tXFDXuQ5oS8Ba8w6k1wanQlclck4LUoQsanwrQ4Hi7hkloWOSQ3KZQwfKwCGYmHsE/w640-h426/210103+house+numbers+8.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Once you’ve chosen your design and
materials, you then need to decide where you’re going to locate your stylish
new house numbers. Perhaps they will be attached to your entrance door, or to
the exterior wall of the house near your door, or perhaps they would be better
suited on your gate or fixed to your boundary wall.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnLhs8eTaUibYWde-Pt5Gm7Lhxx8y0CPb7taOVTQ5OryFRG1w0P3biAny5E71IWRA8i8BMrIQZW2GiW0-QxhF2IzsygyP1hBxYOo_fIfmP2GizArTiWGbYWWYtYM6QV6yFHGcn0I0TpW97/s2048/210103+house+numbers+9.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1366" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnLhs8eTaUibYWde-Pt5Gm7Lhxx8y0CPb7taOVTQ5OryFRG1w0P3biAny5E71IWRA8i8BMrIQZW2GiW0-QxhF2IzsygyP1hBxYOo_fIfmP2GizArTiWGbYWWYtYM6QV6yFHGcn0I0TpW97/w640-h426/210103+house+numbers+9.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Until I really started paying attention to
the numbers on people’s houses, I had no idea how diverse the range of number
and plaque options was. Neither had I considered what a difference they make to
the overall appearance of a house, nor what they can tell you about the people
living within. As I live in a shared building that has a name, which can’t be
changed, but no house number, I’m not in a position to personalise a number for
my home but I am now rather envious of those of you who can. Good luck with
your choices!</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnozZDBf4lJqKbgbmFRloytVQPb2U5raZ-_iZBCRcDOIZqwW7qfE6TosRriSalJ1bMqlUWHbEta7POJogfGIzYe9Vakyrnh-pG8tyjNTT5ZoAbn605R2y84ymUjTwiv6oYbecxQvCWupBd/s2048/210103+house+numbers+10.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1365" data-original-width="2048" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnozZDBf4lJqKbgbmFRloytVQPb2U5raZ-_iZBCRcDOIZqwW7qfE6TosRriSalJ1bMqlUWHbEta7POJogfGIzYe9Vakyrnh-pG8tyjNTT5ZoAbn605R2y84ymUjTwiv6oYbecxQvCWupBd/w640-h426/210103+house+numbers+10.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-12616877268924433382020-12-28T10:35:00.000+00:002020-12-28T10:35:10.786+00:00Penarth : Skytown Gateway<p>I’m several months late to the party but
today I’d like to celebrate the fact that this year Penarth has gained a new
public artwork, and, though I think it fails in its aspirations, I rather like the
piece itself. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM3oteM5GbW55Mvq-GWaTDa5IjPQR79PzMFzdXRFqcGSETMI5hsXYUdglysmxgsD2YAmTH9VxC1XNn7kCynqBWbxS9ZmiJvbbexe3CWaXOffkYDl9aTIFG-rMkz7Km42HMt-dSq-QQofbG/s2048/201227+dingle+gateway+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM3oteM5GbW55Mvq-GWaTDa5IjPQR79PzMFzdXRFqcGSETMI5hsXYUdglysmxgsD2YAmTH9VxC1XNn7kCynqBWbxS9ZmiJvbbexe3CWaXOffkYDl9aTIFG-rMkz7Km42HMt-dSq-QQofbG/w640-h384/201227+dingle+gateway+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">You might, justifiably, wonder how the Vale
of Glamorgan Council managed to fund something like this given the financial
challenges of the current global pandemic. In fact, this was part of the
development deal, the obligations negotiated under the Section 106 agreement,
when Council granted planning permission for the Penarth Heights housing
development.</span> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6jVYBLIdsNlfacgg-jRJ_KA9jjT1lEkZP2wb3okEiohUJCmAFtRmN6PyDfn7sM25HLxS9EenCNQo7gIDq5UPZ2qPNFc_NbXvnSSW57xAwrO1BoUSue_zjQuk0Yl6e0QIzxJkTNGxEaYjc/s1605/201227+dingle+gateway+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="963" data-original-width="1605" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6jVYBLIdsNlfacgg-jRJ_KA9jjT1lEkZP2wb3okEiohUJCmAFtRmN6PyDfn7sM25HLxS9EenCNQo7gIDq5UPZ2qPNFc_NbXvnSSW57xAwrO1BoUSue_zjQuk0Yl6e0QIzxJkTNGxEaYjc/w640-h384/201227+dingle+gateway+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The Skytown Gateway sits above the central
entrance to Dingle Park, on Windsor Road in Penarth. According to the <a href="www.valeofglamorgan.gov.uk/penarthskytown" target="_blank">Council’s website</a>,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>the park’s ‘entrances and boundary railings
were considered to be unsightly’ so were ‘<span style="background: white; color: black;">identified as requiring an upgrade in order to provide a visually
impressive, exciting and high quality gateway into the town.’ A well-meaning
sentiment perhaps, and the railings do look much better since they’ve been
refurbished, but neither the lower nor upper entrances to the park have changed
at all and they are, in fact, the entrances that get most use. And, though I do
think the </span>gateway artwork is impressive, its effect as a town rather
than a park gateway is lost by its position immediately adjacent to a roundabout,
which drivers of passing traffic are, hopefully, concentrating on negotiating
rather than glancing around at the scenery. Also, as there is nowhere nearby to
park, visitors to the town are unlikely to stop to admire the artwork, so as a ‘gateway
into the town’, it fails.</span> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiQiQGMxlqkUO1Ng9cJh6K6yf1jqUU_gMSlG64u__ljaFsU05FYoz5c7azB0M2Jdui5PDtJLAbKiX-pKxpiVGBLsu6NXklxTVZoSPKe4k7n10OqlF0bf6ZdjdfeRmQwuDmByU7H-9TW6op/s2048/201227+dingle+gateway+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiQiQGMxlqkUO1Ng9cJh6K6yf1jqUU_gMSlG64u__ljaFsU05FYoz5c7azB0M2Jdui5PDtJLAbKiX-pKxpiVGBLsu6NXklxTVZoSPKe4k7n10OqlF0bf6ZdjdfeRmQwuDmByU7H-9TW6op/w640-h384/201227+dingle+gateway+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">As a ‘visually impressive’ gateway, though,
I think it’s a winner, and the makers, a company called <a href="https://www.codsteaks.com/" target="_blank">Cod Steaks</a> from
Bristol, have done a great job of capturing the
character of the town. The Council website page about the Skytown Gateway
project includes a link to <a href="https://www.valeofglamorgan.gov.uk/Documents/Our%20Council/consultation/2020-consultations/Cod-Steaks-Dingle-Artworks-Report-March-2020.pdf" target="_blank">a report from Cod Steaks</a> on
their creation process, including consultations with the local community and
workshops with local school children to develop the ideas behind the finished
artwork. It’s interesting to note that their workshops initially focused on the
local flora and fauna, as you might expect from a gateway to a park, but the
end product refers only to the built heritage of the town with no reference at all
to the natural environment, a missed opportunity but presumably a deliberate
decision by the Council.</span> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0sNW4mCRBls8OShqsXuHLPd6P7uhxzk3kgpjdiXNUWjh_I1nW81a12pkvRK3_HLjyO82qiwwdsMida5crgAr2A7EjOG8pLeXb2OohJtPo5by6muLDXeHU1WfIk-pRPv6lUiX_83MlwQ6S/s2048/201227+dingle+gateway+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0sNW4mCRBls8OShqsXuHLPd6P7uhxzk3kgpjdiXNUWjh_I1nW81a12pkvRK3_HLjyO82qiwwdsMida5crgAr2A7EjOG8pLeXb2OohJtPo5by6muLDXeHU1WfIk-pRPv6lUiX_83MlwQ6S/w640-h384/201227+dingle+gateway+%25284%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">As you can see in my photographs, the
gateway includes references to many well-known local buildings and to the town’s
maritime history. Residents will recognise St Augustine’s Church, the Penarth
Pier Pavilion, the former public swimming baths, and the old Custom House, as
well as generic terraced houses and a town house, the town clock and the lamp
standards that run along the Esplanade. From the surrounding maritime
landscape, there are the lighthouse on the island of Flat Holm and the Pink
Shed, formerly used for yachting race officials, that sits on an arm of the Cardiff
Barrage, and a tug boat. And representing local tourism and recreational
facilities, the artwork includes a yacht and a caravan.</span> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p></o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Od88Q8mV32h3ISMLNMb8ptBxYi9gr8dM0DhB5a_cxv7sRgzCUfkSwWXXUcr41U4D8GaAYnmsvFL_fWkXQ87iY98dDkB9sSK7yseFFMC36lrYM5HWpKQkuZCk1n5dY3Kvz5d9DenpM2gd/s2805/201227+dingle+gateway+%25285%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1121" data-original-width="2805" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Od88Q8mV32h3ISMLNMb8ptBxYi9gr8dM0DhB5a_cxv7sRgzCUfkSwWXXUcr41U4D8GaAYnmsvFL_fWkXQ87iY98dDkB9sSK7yseFFMC36lrYM5HWpKQkuZCk1n5dY3Kvz5d9DenpM2gd/w640-h256/201227+dingle+gateway+%25285%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The Cod Steaks project report notes that the
artwork has been constructed from over 4000 pieces of precision-cut steel, finished
with blue paint, and includes low-level LED lighting within the buildings,
which must look quite lovely at night – I have yet to visit in the evenings so
have no visuals of the ‘diffused, charming glow’ of the lighting effects. When
I do get some photos, I’ll add one or two to this post.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJDbP87HNFwL0W7vMzQZe3PoPF14uimfMM8VOvAgGpc2tLkRRJ4xddaU2hXbS9xClNMSJ4yYL1xucc7Um-zjUNBDswqaq84rIllUVNrNTJreI9Rfb27MemC4QPSnNAGASNMCCbX7ee0Z-i/s2048/201227+dingle+gateway+%25286%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="2048" height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJDbP87HNFwL0W7vMzQZe3PoPF14uimfMM8VOvAgGpc2tLkRRJ4xddaU2hXbS9xClNMSJ4yYL1xucc7Um-zjUNBDswqaq84rIllUVNrNTJreI9Rfb27MemC4QPSnNAGASNMCCbX7ee0Z-i/w640-h384/201227+dingle+gateway+%25286%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><span lang="EN-GB"><br /></span><p></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8044843649234143787.post-51892809118566370822020-12-20T17:00:00.001+00:002020-12-20T17:00:08.294+00:00Doors: Christmas wreaths<p>As I’ve been meandering around the local
streets in recent days, I’ve been delighted to see how many people have
decorated their front doors with lovely Christmas wreaths, some the more
traditional arrangements of woven greenery adorned with ribbons and natural
objects like cones and seedheads, others presenting a more modern take on these
ancient twistings.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8s9n1amuTwUU0khZNeDNVLYvT793FaFjyj2YTZHleFBo3iTSy0Sx1SZLqWUCV_JkxzGx_evV7ZhbmWx79sPgu3g2IpPh7V8ebaLIwkpN11TGS1TCVYH1fg45onYpdQa0m_uxi32ubSwmv/s2556/201220+christmas+door+%25281%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1230" data-original-width="2556" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8s9n1amuTwUU0khZNeDNVLYvT793FaFjyj2YTZHleFBo3iTSy0Sx1SZLqWUCV_JkxzGx_evV7ZhbmWx79sPgu3g2IpPh7V8ebaLIwkpN11TGS1TCVYH1fg45onYpdQa0m_uxi32ubSwmv/w640-h308/201220+christmas+door+%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The word wreath comes from the Old English
words <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">writha</i>, meaning ‘to writhe’,
and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="background: white; color: black;">wrīthan</span></i></span><span style="background: white; color: black;">,
meaning ‘to make into coils, plait’, which, over time, has become the circle</span>
of twisted materials we now recognise. However, the concept of a wreath goes
back long before the Old English words, perhaps as far as our pagan ancestors,
though the earliest historical references come from Ancient Greece. Green
crowns of laurel feature in Greek mythology and, in both Ancient Greece and Rome,
wreaths of laurel, oak, olive and other leaves were awarded to the heroic and
to victors in athletic contests and in battle, as well as being worn by priests
officiating at sacrifices and by brides during their weddings.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiLLCfi8W-R-13P2dh4LbRU6H6nhuQIKqtLQvC8D4SAdJohLL63ONFa8oOMc579wHwPyRmea48rzWOgGWBAmSm3cQaifjlLRFgXVP_ECUUIF4fFa6TNixBBcAlQHeMEOh9Mn-gdFc7LtAH/s2545/201220+christmas+door+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1236" data-original-width="2545" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiLLCfi8W-R-13P2dh4LbRU6H6nhuQIKqtLQvC8D4SAdJohLL63ONFa8oOMc579wHwPyRmea48rzWOgGWBAmSm3cQaifjlLRFgXVP_ECUUIF4fFa6TNixBBcAlQHeMEOh9Mn-gdFc7LtAH/w640-h310/201220+christmas+door+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The idea of a Christmas wreath seems to
have developed around the same time as that of the Christmas tree, perhaps as a
way to make use of the excess trimmings of those trees. The tradition of having
a Christmas tree in the house is believed to have originated with the Germans
in the sixteenth century and to have been introduced to Britain by Prince
Albert after his marriage to Queen Victoria in 1840, though at least one
historian disputes that account. Alison Barnes writes on the <a href="https://www.historytoday.com/archive/history-matters/first-christmas-tree" target="_blank">History Today website </a>that it was ‘“good Queen Charlotte”, the German wife of George III, who
set up the first known English tree at Queen’s Lodge, Windsor, in December,
1800.’ (Barnes’s article also gives more information about the first German
Christmas trees.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg13RItmqeTjSIiBLfd4nU8tuwair3HzvC4A_5Xs1Z0IU8kdqTIkTCPqtDSHlAqhC7BJPzObN1oKI4athS_6E-35liFThTOiJ4iAjXrilJAaC2WPwFoK1oRLDLK78mw8QNms6XlYVlsajHr/s2549/201220+christmas+door+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1234" data-original-width="2549" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg13RItmqeTjSIiBLfd4nU8tuwair3HzvC4A_5Xs1Z0IU8kdqTIkTCPqtDSHlAqhC7BJPzObN1oKI4athS_6E-35liFThTOiJ4iAjXrilJAaC2WPwFoK1oRLDLK78mw8QNms6XlYVlsajHr/w640-h310/201220+christmas+door+%25283%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Returning to the Christmas wreath, its
circular shape is thought to have a Christian meaning, the never-ending circle
a <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>symbol of eternal life (though it’s
also an easy shape to create and to hang). And the use of evergreen foliage is
thought to have been equally important, symbolic also of immortality and,
during the harshest days of winter, of hope for the spring to come.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2iebzPcnpov7161iI1ZU2smz1RoeUNaCToMSftRgDA9lZY4WHRrGykcXnoFf5LT9BgwBUsrjMlqxXtHoND47saiiM3g_I9LbKsdWYYPAVbystgd5-E2DDAvRt-hE9gp7EGCGaaxTVzgt5/s2544/201220+christmas+door+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1236" data-original-width="2544" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2iebzPcnpov7161iI1ZU2smz1RoeUNaCToMSftRgDA9lZY4WHRrGykcXnoFf5LT9BgwBUsrjMlqxXtHoND47saiiM3g_I9LbKsdWYYPAVbystgd5-E2DDAvRt-hE9gp7EGCGaaxTVzgt5/w640-h310/201220+christmas+door+%25284%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Whatever the meaning we each choose to attribute
to the Christmas wreath, there can be no doubt that they are an important,
often colourful, always welcoming addition to our doorways during the festive
season and, in these dark, depressing and devastating days of global pandemic,
they are a feast for the eyes and a welcome source of good cheer.</span></p>sconzanihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09203680536891586950noreply@blogger.com0