40 Years of the Somerset Vernacular Building Research Group
Last weekend I was involved in organising an event to celebrate the 40th birthday of the Somerset Vernacular Building Research Group (SVBRG). The main picture is of the wonderful birthday cake. It was based on a manor farmhouse in South Cadbury, Somerset. The SVBRG...
King John at Worcester – England Bites Back
I believe it was the historian David Carpenter who suggested that the lion at the base of the tomb effigy of King John at Worcester Cathedral represents the people of England. The lion has grabbed King John’s sword and is biting and bending it. The lion is turning on...
King John & England – from Angevin Kingdom to Papal Fiefdom
I recently went to a performance of Shakespeare’s King John at the RSC in Stratford Upon Avon. It is not a play that is performed often, and I wasn’t sure what to expect as I hadn’t read up about the RSC’s performance beforehand. I was blown away by it. It was set in...
Devon Marble – Petitor Quarries and Beyond
The main photo for this post is the beautiful marble-tiled paving of the chancel at All Saints Church, Babbacombe in Devon. It is made up of coloured Devon Marble varieties from the Petitor beds – a form of limestone that can be polished for a marble effect (not a...
Butterfield in Babbacombe – All Saints Church
Parish Church of All Saints, St. Alban’s Road, Babbacombe, Torbay, Devon (1865-74). One of the key works of the architect William Butterfield (1814 to 1900) that sticks in my mind is that of Keble College, Oxford. The overall shape of the building appears as a sober,...
Old Ideas Reimagined: Gaudi’s Garden Suburb – Park Guell (1900-14)
Antoni Gaudi i Cornet’s (1852 to 1926) unique style can easily be identified by his buildings in the city of Barcelona and at the Park Guell on the outskirts. It is difficult to unpick fully the varied influences that Gaudi drew upon for his creations. However, this...
Exploring Building History
Exploring Building History is a non-commercial site. It is my own personal musings on architectural history. There is wealth of built heritage in England, and as I explore and think about what I see, I post my reflections on this site.