Mar 5, 2025
Medieval Winchester is still very much in evidence in the way it is laid out. The city’s grid system of streets developed from what was laid out in the late 9th C.[i] Although many buildings have disappeared and new ones built in subsequent periods, there those still...
Jul 24, 2024
The subject for the dissertation for my master’s degree was on Late-Tudor & Early-Stuart Gatehouses in Central Southwest England. The study of them introduced me to the ‘shell-headed alcove’ or ‘niche’. Several of them have the feature built into them. They are at...
Apr 22, 2022
It is useful, I find, when examining civic architecture and the architecture of the English country house to remember the classical arch, of which there are key examples in Rome. The triumphal arch and the triumphal column were testament to the dominance of...
Jan 6, 2020
On the first floor of the gatehouse at Berry Pomeroy Castle are the remains of a finely executed wall painting of the Adoration of the Magi. It dates from circa 1490 to 1500. (Kightly, Berry Pomeroy Castle, p. 7). The original castle, of which the gatehouse and...
Dec 31, 2019
The spectacular gatehouse of Layer Marney is embellished with astounding terracotta ornamentation. This is particularly impressive when taking the date of its build into consideration. It was built during the early part of Henry VIII’s reign (reign was 1509 to 1547)....
Dec 17, 2019
Nestling in the Essex countryside is the magnificent early-Tudor gatehouse of Layer Marney. It was intended to be the imposing entrance to what would have been a grand early-16th C house. Only the wings of the intended house and the gatehouse were completed....
