Thursday 22 September 2016

Thought for the day...

I took this photo on a trip to my favourite National Trust property Snowshill Manor near Broadway in Gloucestershire.

The C16th house was bought by Charles Wade just after the first world war. He saw the property advertised in Country Life while he was at the front and promised himself that, if he survived, he would buy it.

But he never intended it to be his home, in fact he converted a tiny building in the grounds, the Priest's House, to live in. It's said to be haunted by a monk and a young woman who was forced to marry in one of the upstairs rooms in 1604.

Wade kept the beautiful country manor simply as a repository for his amazing collection of STUFF.

I can't describe it any better than that because the variety is staggering: Samurai armour (26 suits), a collection of scrimshaw, toys, musical instruments, Oriental carving and furniture, bicycles, looms…the list goes on and on. He was an inveterate collector and almost every item came from large houses in the UK at a time when many old family properties were selling treasures because they were struggling with death duties and the lack of labour after the war (very Downton Abbey).

Thank goodness he saved so many wonderful things for us to enjoy now. You can see why it's a place I enjoy so much, It speaks to my wish to save and care for old things and enjoy them today and in the future. His motto was "let nothing perish" and so his quote below is my Thought for the Day:



Have a wonderful day and keep saving and enjoying wonderful things x

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