Hardwick Hall February 27

Magnificent Elizabethan Hardwick Hall on a sunny day.  Also known as "Malfoy Manor" from the Harry Potter movies.

"Hardwick Hall, More Glass than Wall." 

  Chimneys were inserted into the walls to allow for more window space.  

Home of Bess Hardwick, second only to Queen Elizabeth 1 in richest women of the day. Married four times.  Who seemed to devote every detail of the home's interiors to the eventual day when Queen Elizabeth would pay her a visit.  It never happened.  It advertises Bess's loyalty and fidelity to the Queen.  As you get closer to the building the strange crenellated forms along the roof which look like shards left by a shelling that somehow left the building itself intact--resolve themselves into Bess's initials, a shout-out to Elizabeth the Queen.

Parts of a beautiful frieze featuring Diana, Goddess of the Hunt and ubiquitous stags, the Hardwick coat-of-arms.

It is perhaps fitting, given Bess's patience and perseverance in waiting for Elizabeth the Queen (not to mention real poignancy) that "The embroidered panel (below) tells the story of Penelope, the loyal wife of Ulysses, who remained faithful to her husband during the ten years it took him to return from the Trojan war. To Penelope's right is Perseverans, holding an eagle that is striving to reach the sun and on her left is Paciens with a lamb reaching up to her."

Click here to visit a blog about conserving Hardwick tapestries "View from My Attic" written by a newly-minted conservator at Hardwick Hall.

Over and over again you are reminded that this is indeed the "Finest needlework collection in the UK."

Locke Park

February 26 I arrive at Heathrow where I'm met by Melly and Eva and whisked off to Barnsley.

We walk in Locke Park with Alfy, the neighbor's dog.  It's half-term and the children are out on the fine  sunny day in droves.

Here's Piper with Alfy in 2012.

And here is more of Locke Park.

Out my bedroom window this morning.

Named for Joseph Locke, who was a railway engineer raised in Barnsley.  According to Wikipedia:

"Joseph Locke (9 August 1805 – 18 September 1860) was a notable English civil engineer of the 19th century, particularly associated with railway projects. Locke ranked alongside Robert Stephenson and Isambard Kingdom Brunel as one of the major pioneers of railway development."

I knew him by the infamous story of the accidental death of William Huskisson, MP for Liverpool.

"When the (Liverpool Manchester) line was finally opened in 1830, it was planned for a procession of eight trains to travel from Liverpool to Manchester and back. George Stephenson drove the leading locomotive “Northumbrian” and Joseph Locke drove “Rocket”. The day was marred by the death ofWilliam Huskisson, the Member of Parliament for Liverpool, who was struck and killed by “Rocket”."

"The (Manchester Sheffield line) project included the three-mileWoodhead Tunnel, and the the building of the line required over a thousand navvies and cost the lives of thirty-two of them, seriously injuring 140 others. The Woodhead Tunnel was such a difficult undertaking that George Stephenson claimed that it could not be done, declaring that he would eat the first locomotive that got through the tunnel. It was estimated that the mortality amongst the navvies at the Woodhead Tunnel was just over 3 per cent, whereas the mortality amongst soldiers at the Battle of Waterloo was only 2.11 per cent.^[3]"

An observation tower was erected by Sarah McCreerey in memory of her sister, Phoebe, the widow of Joseph Locke, and donor of the land for the park.

Here is Locke Park's bonfire night last year:

  There is also a Ghost Walk and a Park Run held the first Saturday of each month.  Speaking of ghosts, an old "not very nice" lady lived in this park gatehouse.  She paid 4.50 a week in rent and believed herself to be the lover of Placido Domingo.  He sent her "packages" which were "signed" by him in her handwriting.  It is now derelict.

Arrival February 26: Getting My Bearings

 Park Road in Barnsley, running between houses and church, allotments and Locke Park.

 Melly's house

 Next door

 The Church

 Looking down the street towards the park

The view of Barnsley from Melly's house

Looking at Melly's House: part 6 Shapes and Proportions

Once you live with these beautiful windows you absorb lessons in geometry and harmony, scale, symmetry and variation to either copy or ignore at will.  At least, that's what I've found.

Proportions and the right shapes in just the right place

Looking at Melly's House part 5: Cut-outs in the Wooden Stairway

Another feature that Makes Melly's house unique are the geometric cut-outs that have been carved into the wooden rails and newel posts as you make your way upstairs, not to mention the way light splashes down the different angles created by a number of archways:

 

Looking at Melly's House part 3: Entryway and Living Room

Melly's stained glass is extraordinary, and is featured in nearly every room.  It's even hidden in an airing cupboard.  Here it is casting its glow in the front entryway, an otherwise windowless corridor.

As a skylight,

 

Stained glass brings light from the top of the house down through the staircase to spill on to the entry hall.

The Front Door

It takes the form of an iris with the proportions of an angel in the living room.

  Count the different shades and textures of green.

The Study Downstairs:

Beautifully rare blue bits of glass

Book cupboard doors are clear, but no less beautiful.

Looking at Mellys House part 4: Upstairs Bedrooms

Upstairs, the stained glass brightens three bedrooms as well as the hallway, and the aforementioned airing cupboard.

 In my room...

The Hallway:

The spare room:

 Melly's room...

Extraordinary variation in purple hues and textures.

Built-in Cupboards and Shelves Above the Fireplace