Thanks for the photo Lindy
Felt sad at Exmouth
I missed the driftwood angel
must have drifted by
Category: History
Wordless Wednesday
PEREUNT ET IMPUTANTUR
The hours pass and are reckoned to our account.
I ended up missing most of Becky’s Time Square challenge in December, this photo wold have been the last one.
The astronomical clock in Exeter Cathedral is 15th century. The clock depicts what was then the known solar system, with the black fleur-d-lys sun going round the dial every 24 hours.The dial above the main one was added in the 18th century and it has one hand to tell the minutes.
Wordless Wednesday
Now she’s travelling . . .
no wonder she looks so confused!#time square
This photo was going to be my Wordless Wednesday, but I realised how it marked the passing of time.
When I was in my teens, I remember the archaeological dig in front of the cathedral, but I didn’t realise the significance of the Roman baths they exposed and then covered over. Now I wish I’d taken more notice. A few years ago, the city made a bid for lottery funding to open up the baths, but it failed, so I don’t suppose I’ll get to see them.
Becky has glowing square sunsets today!
Re-imaging the city wall
I live in a very old city, the Romans arrived around 55 AD, and scared off the local Celtic tribe. They built a wall around the city they had named Isca Dumnoniorum and left a couple hundred years later. The wall, or about seventy per cent of it is still here. Impressive builders those Romans.
One of the good things about Facebook is all the local groups, one of the ones I follow, Exeter Memories is great for photos of Exeter in the past, it always provokes a lot of ooohs and aaahs and I remember that, but a couple of days ago there was a real treat.
The really talented Jerry Bird posted this photo in the group, and kindly gave me permission to post it here. He’s scanned a drawing of the ancient South Gate, from an old book on Exeter, and superimposed it onto a photo he took. The location, a not very appealing road into the city, was rebuilt quickly after the blitz and sadly looks nothing like this, except for the road markings and the car.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if it did?
Jerry has plans to create some more of these images and i can’t wait to see them.
Thank you Jerry for bringing history to life.
#Timesquare
What’s the time Mr Wolf? Well, it’s somewhere around 1820 and last Sunday I travelled back in time to meet this lady and learn a little about a Regency house. The event was organised by a Heavitree Place and People a FB local history group, with the good lady below, from Interwoven Productions in charge of haunting.
Check out what Becky’s up to today for her #timesquare challenge.
A building in distress
The manor of Poltimore was bequeathed to the Bampfylde family by a Canon of Exeter Cathedral, at the end of the 13th century. It’s likely that a house was built on the estate, but no trace has been found near the present site. The current house was completed in the middle of the 16th century and was lived in by the family until 1920.
Since then it’s been a school, a WW2 evacuation centre and a hospital.
The house fell into a dilapidated state after an arson attack in 1987. This is how it looks now.
In 2000, a trust was set up to try to preserve the house. Half a million pounds was donated by English heritage, in 2009 to begin the restoration process. Sadly it will take an awful lot more to return it to o its full glory.
Traces of the past
I’m just scraping in with Paula’s Thursday Special, Traces of the past. I took this photo because it made me smile. It’s in a local pub, a very old one, a real coaching inn that would have been just inside the city wall.
You an join in here, thanks Paula it’s great to see you!
Lucid Gypsy 