From Inside Southwell Minster

The bronze eagle at Southwell was made in 1503 and was the property of Newstead Abbey.  At some stage it was hidden in a lake but some 250 years later was rediscovered when the lake was drained and acquired by Southwell Minster.  The internal doorway was also very old and really charming.

The Mouseman

At some stage there was a fire at Southwell Minster and the furnishings were replaced by Robert Thompson (1876 - 1955) .  Robert was known as the Mouseman, or Mousy, because of his now famous signature of a carved mouse on his furniture. Here are two examples from Southwell.

Interior of Southwell Minster

The interior of Southwell Minster was spectacular and my photograph does not really do it justice.  The deeply carved stoneworks in the Chapter House show a wonderful observation of Nature and great dexterity in stone carving.

Southwell Minster

Two images from Southwell Minster, the  so called, 'mother church' for the county of Nottinghamshire in the UK.  Much of the cathedral and the artifacts it contains are well over a thousand years old. Both this wall hanging and the mosaic floor (which is now displayed under glass) are among these very old items.

Scaracen's Head Hotel, Southwell, UK

We had lunch at this old pub in Southwell with all its marvelous history.  The top picture is of the pub today with the second picture giving the history.  The third image is of the arrest warrant (which was on display at the pub) for Charles the First, King of England with the signatures and seals of those involved.

"The Heron Migrates" a book by Bruce Martin

At last the manuscript I have been working on for so long is nearly completed.  Jill Webster has done a marvelous job of the layout and it is just about to be taken to the printers.  I already have some firm orders but would like to know whether some of you would like a copy as the larger the print run the lower the unit costs will be.  Please email me if you are interested and I will advise you of the price and mailing options as soon as possible.
Just a short quote from the introduction to give you an idea of the book's content.  "This is a merged document of Estelle's and my diaries of our visits to Japan, the building of the Kamaka Anagama, Sanyo Fujii's visit to New Zealand and the following joint exhibition with him in Osaka in 1984.  It also contains notes on building and firing a full sized anagama kiln and some of our experiences while in Japan and while working with a large anagama kiln."  And lots of photographs.

Last Images from Hardwick Hall

The picture of the living room shows modern lighting and furnishings but these rooms must have been very hard to keep warm.  The huge tapestries, like this one depicting peacocks, were hung on the walls to help keep out the cold draughts.