The village of Bonsall in Derbyshire

The pretty village of Bonsall lies on and around a hill just off the Via Gellia (the A5012) which runs from Cromford until it meets the A515 Buxton to Ashbourne road. Various sources say that the Via Gellia was probably named for or by Phillip Eyre Gell who had the road built through the valley around 1790 so that he could move lead from his lead mines down to a new smelting works at Cromford.  Other sources say that the road was there much earlier in the 1720s and was used as a route for transporting stone from the Gell family's quarries at nearby Hopton.  The area was noted for its cotton mills and the name of Viyella fabric (a mixture of wool and cotton) is said to come from from the Via Gellia valley.

Anyway, back to the historic former lead mining village of Bonsall.   We parked near the Cascades Gardens and wandered through the recreation ground to our first port of call.

Priorities right and first things first - lunch! 

At the Fountain Tea Rooms which is
opposite the village fountain.  The Fountain also provides B&B accommodation.

  The fountain is Victorian Gothic in design  and was restored by the Parish Council in 1993.

After lunch we took a steep climb up the public footpath to the parish church which sits high on its hill overlooking the village.

The Parish Church of St James was built in the 13th century in a

prominent position over looking the village. Much of the exterior  was rebuilt in 1862.  Inside it has what is thought to be the highest chancel in the country as there are seven steps up to the chancel from the nave.  Hiding in the church is also what is known as the 'Bonsall Imp'.  We'll explore inside in a later post.

The Market Cross is a Grade II listed building and is thought to date from the 17th century although some parts could be earlier.  It apparently has 13 steps, I didn't count them.  The ball on top was added in 1671 about the time the village asked to be allowed a market charter but their application was never granted.

One of the village wells.  The village holds a 'well dressing' festival and carnival at the end of July.

A framework knitters cottage at the start of the Limestone Way.

The 'T'owd Man of Bonsall' is thought to depict a lead miner and it is also probably one of the earliest ever illustrations of a miner.  The original carving was in the village church but it is now found embedded in the wall at St Mary's Wirkswirth  (link to my post on St Mary's Church - here)

Another view of the Market Cross with the 17th century King's Head pub behind it.

We had come to the village to visit the Cascades gardens and nursery.  This a a four acre garden in the centre of the village which takes advantage of the natural landscape. Like The Fountain it also has B&B accommodation.

I'll share more about the garden in a later post.

Soft, Gentle Rain

After what was a warm and quite humid weekend  this morning it was wonderful to go out in the cooler air and the fine rain.

Last night it was so hot and airless, by 1a.m. we were up again, too hot to sleep, watching the full moon appearing from clouds to light up the still, early morning sky. 

We'd spent most of the weekend at home apart from a quick walk to the local shop to get milk and newspapers and a quick visit to the vets to get our elderly cat Max his latest medication.  He is 21 years old and has been diagnosed with hyper thyroid and by Friday he was so lethargic we really thought he was on his way out but after a couple of days of pills he seems livelier and actually went out into the garden on Sunday seeking cool, damp areas in which to snooze.

This morning we went up to the Emma Bridgewater factory shop for a treat of morning coffee and a shared brownie (they brought us two plates to the table) and then we went through to the walled garden which is behind the factory shop.  

It was gorgeous. The flowers and grasses were sparkling with delicate raindrops, making them look fresh and bright after a weekend of heat.

I've taken you into this garden before in other posts but each year it changes slightly and this year most of the plants were in galvanised steel containers which were planted full of gorgeous cottage garden flowers.

 One of the chickens and her chicks were pecking in the garden.

 The soft, muted colours of some of the flowers looked wonderful in the warm drizzle.

For a short while, time stood still.

 As we enjoyed being in the midst of such loveliness

So many ideas that you could adapt and achieve on a smaller scale for your own garden if you wished too.

Five on Friday - the Dinosaurs of China

On Wednesday we visited an exhibition we'd had tickets for since March.  It seemed a long time since we'd booked the visit but the day had finally arrived.  Our time slot was 11.30a.m. 

Our destination was Wollaton Hall in Nottingham where, according to the poster, it's all happening.  It was busy but not as busy as we thought it would be, outside marquees and refreshment facilities and extra portaloos were in place.  We parked easily under the trees, in the shade and were in plenty of time for our entry slot.

The exhibition is entitled  'Dinosaurs of China,  Ground Shakers to Feathered Flyers' and is a joint operation between China, Nottingham City Council and Nottingham University. It is, according to naturalist Chris Packham in his introduction to the exhibition, 'a once in a lifetime experience exhibiting dinosaur skeletons and fossils never before seen outside of Asia.'

The message as you head towards the exhibits is that 'you may never look at dinosaurs or birds  the same way again'  as they try to answer what they term 'a ticklish question'  the question being  'could birds be the relatives of long lost dinosaurs?'   Since our last visit earlier this year the layout of the galleries had been altered and many of the exhibitions put away so that the skeletons, fossils and illustrations could be housed.  The exhibition moves through three areas, dinosaurs that didn't have feathers, those that did and proto or early birds.  The conclusion, which apparently has been known for quite a few years now is that
'dinosaurs are not extinct, birds are dinosaurs'

As it is Friday I'm showing you five photos from the exhibition for no particular reason other than that they are the best of the ones I could manage as trying to take photos around other people and especially groups of school children was quite difficult as was the light from the windows in some of the galleries.

1.  Protoceratops - is described as a humble relative of the mighty Triceratops.  A herbivore its period is late Cretaceous and many have been found throughout northern China and Mongolia.  It would have been the size of sheep.

2. Mamenchisaurus - was a late Jurassic herbivore and was discovered in Sichuan Province, central China.  It is classed in this exhibition as a peaceful plant eating ground shaker.

3. Lufengosaurus - was the first dinosaur  discovered, studied and displayed by Chinese scientists.  Another herbivore found in Yunnan Province in South Western China its age is early Jurassic and it would have been about the size of a transit van.

4.  Oviraptor - about the size of an emu and possibly an omnivore.  When first found it was laid on a nest of dinosaur eggs and was thought to be an egg thief caught in the act.  That is what its name means.  Since it was found many other fossilised Oviraptors have been found sitting on nests.  Its age is late Cretaceous and examples have been found across Mongolia and northern China.

5.  Linheraptor - this was a complete skeleton found in rock and is known as Velociraptor's Big Brother.  It is thought to have had feathers like other raptors. It was a carnivore of the late Cretaceous period and was found in inner Mongolia in north west China.  It was thought to be about the size of a bicycle.

Some of the background illustrations in the exhibition were wonderful so I've chosen five to put in the collage above to show you.

Joining in with Tricky at F.A.S.T blog for this weeks Five on Friday.  Use the link below to visit his blog and find others who are taking part this week.

Selly Manor Museum and Minworth Greaves, Bournville

Sitting on their corner plot in the lovely village of Bournville, looking for all the world as if they had been there for centuries but you'd be wrong in thinking so as all is not as it seems.

Selly Manor dates back to Mediaeval times and once stood in nearby Selly Oak. It was moved piece by piece to its present position by George Cadbury, chocolate maker and founder of Bournville. 

Known as Smyths Tenement it was a successful and prosperous house until c.1695 when change of ownership brought about a gradual decline in its status.  By the 19th century it was divided into three dwellings and called The Rookery but  later that century it was empty and unused when George Cadbury decided he wanted it in his new village.

Inside on the ground floor are a parlour, a dining hall and a kitchen.  These rooms are full of furniture and objects collected by Laurence Cadbury in the early years of the 20th century.

On the next floor is a bedchamber and a solar room and above them a garret which would have been servants quarters.  In the garret are helmets and armour from the museum's collections some of which you can try on.

In the solar was a rack of Tudor style costumes, lace collars, ruffs and hats all could be worn and tried for size.  They were all beautifully made in sumptuous fabrics and colours.

 Minworth Greaves is a cruck framed building thought to be around 750 years old.  It was moved from near Sutton Coldfield by Laurence Cadbury in 1932 and rebuit near Selly Manor.  .

The person on duty said that it had originally been moved so that parts of it could be used in the Manor but it was decided it was such a wonderful building it should be rebuilt in its own place nearby.

Inside it houses the ticket office, reception and shop

The outside sits beautifully in the wonderful garden created around the two buildings.

A few more photos below

 The Knot garden.  All the plants in the garden are what would have been grown in Tudor times.  Like herbs both culinary and medicinal, fruit and vegetables all for household use.

 Another entrance to the house.

 I love this side of the house with its different roof levels and chimneys.

Wild flowers at the side of Minworth Greaves.

I hope you have enjoyed visiting these two wonderful buildings.  After our visit here we followed a little section of the Bournville Heritage Trail.

Dudmaston Hall

The first visit we made on our few days away was to Dudmaston Hall, a National Trust property near the village of Quatt which is in between Bridgnorth and Kidderminster.   We always travel to places away from motorways and huge city centres if we can and National Trust properties are wonderful for stopping for leg stretches, lunches, picnics and other facilities.  We'd been past this place on a couple of occasions but we'd always found it closed.  This time it was open so we spent couple a couple of hours there including eating our picnic before we continued with our journey.

Apparently Dudmaston Hall has been lived in by the same family for 875 years, passing down the generations through inheritance or marriage and has never been sold. The present house dates from the 17th century and is still lived in by members of the family.  Because it is still a family home photography isn't allowed in the hall but there are many surprises inside as alongside the period room settings there are two galleries full of modern art and sculpture.

We took a stroll in the gardens and down towards the water which is known as the Big Pool.

The plants and flowers down by the pond were lovely and the gunnera was high enough to be able to walk under the leaves.

This is the public exit to the house, straight out under a lovely pink rose entwined with a deep purple clematis.  The last exhibition just before we left was my favourite.  Several objects from the collection had been chosen and put on display with a time line around the walls of both British and World events to put them into context plus the history of the family at the same time.

Shepherd's Hut in the orchard

Bright geraniums against the old brick wall

Around the garden were modern sculptures and also photos of what certain areas would have looked like in the late 19th century.

A photo of the family in the 1890s

Flowers by the Big Pool

and in the Kitchen Garden

I loved these modern gates to the courtyard, they are called The Eternity Gates and were commissioned in 1983 by Sir George and Lady Labouchere to commemorate their ruby wedding. 

There was a small version of this sculpture on the piano in one of the galleries.
The sculpture called Spaceframe 1970 is by Anthony Twentyman.

It was beginning to drizzle with rain so it was time to move on towards Kidderminster and Bromsgrove and our next destination.