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  • London – Kensington and Chelsea (Borough of) – Victoria and Albert Museum (Reliquary Diptych)

    London – Kensington and Chelsea (Borough of) – Victoria and Albert Museum (Reliquary Diptych)

    This rather lovely item (or, to be precise, two items as it’s two halves of a folding reliquary and has two catalogue numbers) is in the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum. And, whilst I’m wittering on, I’m very impressed at the level of information about this item (and I’m hoping many others) on their web-site, there are tens of paragraphs of information about these reliquaries and far more than I can ever really understand.

    I like reliquaries, especially personal ones which would have been deeply important to their owners, although this was likely made for a monastery. This one is thought to have been made in Spoleto, a town nearby to Perugia in Italy, in the 1320s. Some of the relics are still in the recessed area, although others are missing or have moved about. It’s not entirely clear who each item was associated with, but there are a few bone fragments.

    There’s lots of provenance for this item, something I’m nearly always intrigued by, I quite like how ownership of items has worked out over time. It was owned by Serafino Tordelli (1787-1864) who was a collector of items who lived in Spoleto, and it was purchased by the dealer Giuseppe Baslini (1817-1877) after Tordelli’s death. The museum then purchased the reliquaries for £4 (£250 in today’s money according to the National Archives) on 17 July 1868.

    The number of faked relics reached the point in the medieval period that there were more body parts for some saints than the individual had limbs for. Many of relics were destroyed during the Reformation and there’s no evidence for many relics at all, other than hearsay. But, at the time it was a personal connection which would have been important and the destruction of so many relics during the Reformation must have caused some considerable distress.

  • London – Kensington and Chelsea (Borough of) – Victoria and Albert Museum

    London – Kensington and Chelsea (Borough of) – Victoria and Albert Museum

    I can’t remember the last time that I went to the Victoria and Albert Museum, it certainly isn’t in the last few years. I’ve also never quite understood what the collections policy of the museum is and what they focus on, although I think it’s primarily decorative items that aren’t covered by other national museums.

    The museum opened in 1852 as the Museum of Manufactures, something of a legacy from the Great Exhibition of 1851. The museum was renamed as the South Kensington Museum, moved to its current location in 1857 and was renamed again as the Victoria and Albert Museum in 1899.

    The V&A is is one of the best rated museums in the world on review sites and I couldn’t find anything negative about my four hour visit there today. The staff at the entrance were welcoming, the security guard was friendly, the signage was clear, the web-site is detailed, everything worked as it should. The collections are enormous, I hadn’t realised that there were seven miles of exhibits should they somehow be stretched out.

    Anyway, lots more individual posts on certain exhibits to follow, but below are some photos from the interior. One thing that might be apparent is that it wasn’t exactly packed with other visitors. Despite spending four hours at the museum, I didn’t get to see everything, this is somewhere that needs multiple visits to properly understand.

  • London – Croydon (Borough of) – Numbers 2-8 Church Road

    London – Croydon (Borough of) – Numbers 2-8 Church Road

    Located near to Croydon Minster (the one with the paving slabs made out of gravestones) I thought that these looked rather beautiful in the otherwise urban environment of the town. From a time where design and heritage was given at least some thought, these are actually from the late nineteenth century and have some nice bits of decorative work.

    There we go, something positive about Croydon.

  • Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue – Day 246

    Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue – Day 246

    The Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue was first published at the end of the eighteenth century, and given that the current health crisis is giving too much time to read books, I thought I’d pick a daily word from it until I got bored….

    Penny-Wise and Pound Foolish

    This definition hasn’t changed over the last two centuries, defined by Grose as “saving in small matters, and extravagant in great”. I don’t have much to add here, other than I find it surprising that the phrase has been in usage since the early seventeenth century, as it perhaps feels a little more modern.

    And the phrase’s usage over the last two centuries.

  • London – Kensington and Chelsea (Borough of) – Ibis Styles Kensington (Seventh Visit)

    London – Kensington and Chelsea (Borough of) – Ibis Styles Kensington (Seventh Visit)

    There has long not been much point my writing up my repeated visits to this hotel for anyone else, the duplication is rather high to say the least. But, since I’m writing this to remind me where I’ve been, I shall happily indulge myself.

    For the first time I’ve been given a room that I’ve had before, which was an upgrade to a larger double room. Spotlessly clean and with a window that opens to ensure ventilation. I like that. Incidentally, the hotel had a heap of heaters near to reception, so I’m probably the only guest that decided the room could be just that bit cooler. The only fault with the room was the one that was there weeks ago, the light on the table doesn’t work. But, I battled on without such luxury and decadence.

    The free welcome drink, my standard choice…..

    The breakfast hasn’t changed much over the last few months, it’s probably not going to satisfy some, but it’s perfectly sufficient as a little snack and I like their coffee. It’s hard for me to find fault, especially taking into account that this room cost under £25 per night, even before reward points are taken into account.

    So, not much else to add to my previous visits, but this is an excellent value for money option and just a short walk away from Earl’s Court railway station.

  • London – Croydon (Borough of) – Croydon Minster

    London – Croydon (Borough of) – Croydon Minster

    I feel I’m in danger of it sounding as if I like everywhere that I go, unless it’s in Croydon. I was hopeful that Croydon Minster would be something which lifted my spirits, but it was shut which wasn’t entirely ideal. However, these are challenging times and I hoped that the exterior would be interesting and intriguing.

    My first impressions were a little negative, as I approached the Minster which seemed to be in the middle of a car park. Also, and I can’t think of a similar sized church where this is the case (and I accept that there are likely many), but there were no information boards to help visitors understand the building.

    To be fair this isn’t just my view, as a council report (that I’ll mention later) did note about the Minster:

    “This is a car-dominated environment that harms the setting of this important asset”.

    Well, there was this to be fair, noting that the churchyard was closed down in 1950 and that a war memorial was placed within in it. Interesting, but not entirely what I was hoping for.

    Some of the problem is that the road has rather come crashing through in front of the church, as is evident from these two side by side images from 100 years ago and today (clicking on the image makes it larger).

    There has been a church here since the Saxon period, so the heritage is undeniable. Unfortunately, there was a substantial fire on 5 January 1867, with much of the interior being lost. That means that the interior is primarily Victorian, but there are six former Archbishops of Canterbury buried here, more than anywhere else other than Lambeth and Canterbury.

    This was the nicest photo I could take of the churchyard, or what is left of it. The box tomb is damaged, but the trees add character.

    This was the churchyard. I make no comment, which is very restrained of me.

    For anyone wondering what happened to the gravestones, clicking on the above image gives a clue. I have to say, I’m not overly impressed with the Church of England here. Someone in the nineteenth century would have likely made great sacrifices to pay for a gravestone for a family member, it would have very likely been something they treasured and would have perhaps thought would have been treated with respect. Knocking it down, cutting bits off to fit and then using it as a paving slab probably wasn’t at the forefront of their mind.

    And more paving slabs. The writing has become heavily eroded now, so it’s hard to make out the dates and names on them.

    Not wanting to labour a point, but the church clearly wanted to pave as wide an area as possible with their new slabs.

    Goodness knows what has happened here.

    But, at least Croydon Council has worked out something is wrong here. A report they commissioned a few ago noted:

    “When there are services at the Minster the area is tightly jammed with cars. The overall quality of the space is poor and
    it does not enhance the setting of the Minster. The subway and associated concrete wall has a negative impact on the character of the area.”

    It was added though that the core of the buildings were exceptional:

    “The Croydon Minster and the complex of buildings at Old Palace School are Grade I listed, the latter described in the Buildings of England series as ‘one of the best survivals in England of a medieval archbishop’s palace’”.

    As for the road plonked in front of the Minster:

    “Roman Way is a busy highway located immediately to the west of the Croydon Minster Conservation Area that has a direct impact on its setting, creating a noisy and car-dominated environment.”

    The report is one of the most sensible documents that I’ve seen, which did bring me some reassurance. Not much else did about this Minster, I think it’s possibly one of the most depressing churchyards I’ve seen.

    And below is how the church looked in 1890, really quite beautiful.


  • Random Posts – Pret Hot Shot Drink

    Random Posts – Pret Hot Shot Drink

    Although anyone sensible would likely have a blog that concentrates on just one thing, it’s quite handy to be able to write about any drivel. On that vein I’ll shift over to food & drink issues, and this is a rather lovely little product from Pret. It contains orange, but to that is added turmeric, ginger and cayenne. It does give quite a kick, it’s an inventive product from Pret…..

  • London – Croydon (Borough of) – John Jorrocks Statue

    London – Croydon (Borough of) – John Jorrocks Statue

    I’m pleased that Footprints of London have written about this statue off George Street in Croydon, as there was no other information located nearby to it to give some context. It’s certainly a striking statue and it’s of John Jorrocks, a fictional character from the nineteenth century that was created by R S Surtees.

    Thanks to the information provided by Footprints of London, they discovered that it was placed here in 1982 by the development company, Waites, who were transforming the building. It was designed by John W Mills who has completed some nationally important works, with his web-site at https://johnwmills.com/.

  • London – Croydon (Borough of) – Ibis Styles

    London – Croydon (Borough of) – Ibis Styles

    I think this was my fifth stay at this hotel, it’s a handy and convenient option for getting flights from Gatwick Airport (or what I call convenient anyway). I suspect the hotel would have wished I hadn’t booked two nights before my flight from Gatwick Airport in April, as I’ve postponed this stay on three occasions and had to contact them to ask why it suddenly got cancelled entirely a couple of months ago. But, they fixed the issues and all was well. Then, when I was at the hotel, I decided I want a different room on the second night. Although they were no doubt annoyed at me, they managed not to show it, which is a definite plus.

    The reception area and where the breakfasts would usually be served. I actually quite liked their breakfasts in the past, they were basic but entirely satisfactory, but they’ve been replaced now by grab bags until the current health crisis is over.

    This was my first room where I should have been for two nights. It’s in the crypt of the building (well, cellar, but I prefer the word I’ve used) and I didn’t much like it, although the design is fine, as there was a slight smell of damp. But, the room was well ventilated, with the option of opening the window and using the air conditioning, so all was well there.

    Well, until the room next door moved in, which involved a birthday party, what seemed like endless numbers of guests and banging of doors. I don’t know the rules on this at the moment, and nor did I check, but it wasn’t ideal. Headphones get rid of most of these issues, although they were pushing their luck a bit here in the neighbouring room. But, to be fair to them, the hotel hasn’t got door dampers on and it absolutely should have done.

    Anyway, I tolerated that situation (I don’t like conflict at the best of time) and hoped the guests wouldn’t be there the next day. I popped back to the room in the afternoon of the second day and the noise situation didn’t look like it’s improve. One woman shouted loudly to another guest “make sure you put your clothes on for when the food arrives” and after something like thirty door bangs which shook the room over the next ten minutes, I decided I wasn’t going to risk this debacle continuing. So, I had to do what a typical British person hates doing, which is to actually complain rather than tut silently about the situation.

    Now, I wouldn’t normally expect a hotel to say this, but since they did I assume they’re content for everyone to know, not that I’m one for gossip. But they told me that the room was occupied by a doctor and this seemed to be a first attempt to negate my complaint. I did add that I didn’t know if the guest they now had in was the same as the night before, although their pattern of behaviour was little different in terms of noise. I had by this point given up on the room, despite the suggestion they’d speak to the room occupant. I’m not sure that’s the best idea in these circumstances, as I don’t know what the occupant might think of that. To be fair, the manager did agree to a room change without my needing to ask for a third time, so all was well. And I’d add that this is the first room change I’ve requested in at least the last 100 hotels that I’ve stayed in (I had hoped for one in a hotel in Warsaw as the room was a bit small, but I didn’t ask for that) so I hardly make a habit of this.

    The second room, I liked this one (and it had a desk that was useable).

    As an aside (another one), I discovered that the air conditioning switched off if the window opened, which isn’t a bad policy. I was pleased I had moved, I much preferred this new room and there were no noise issues. There were clearly some minor damp issues as the hotel had painted over them, but it didn’t smell of damp and I was entirely happy. And, as a bonus, the shower in this second room had a choice of temperatures, where the first room was locked into just offering a scaldingly hot water temperature.

    The breakfast on day one, this isn’t a bad little effort. The milk is quite hard to open, so the easiest solution is to use the straw to pierce the carton and try and drain it from that. I say easiest, it was still a slight challenge, but that helped me wake up.

    And a little variety for the second day.

    So, overall, I can’t much complain about the hotel as the prices were towards the lower end of the scale. They do though perhaps need to look at the internal noise of doors slamming, but otherwise, there were no huge problems. I’m not sure I dare stay again, but I wouldn’t suggest that there are any reasons why others shouldn’t.

  • London – Croydon (Borough of) – Elis David Almshouse

    London – Croydon (Borough of) – Elis David Almshouse

    This set of almshouses is located close to Croydon Minster and it gives something of a medieval feel to the area. There are two ranges, the south range (on the left of the above photo) and the north range (on the right). They were founded in 1447 by Elias Davy, although the current south range dates to 1887 and the north range to 1875.

    The charity who runs the almshouses has put together a comprehensive history of the site, although they moved the residents to a purpose built new centre in 1974 which has 55 flats. Elias Davy (or Elye Davy) saw his name evolve into Elis David over the centuries, primarily through misunderstandings and errors, but his contribution hasn’t been forgotten. Elias had made his money as a draper and it’s thought that he was inspired to create a charitable foundation by Richard Whittington (better known as Dick Whittington), a fellow draper.

    Elias purchased the land here in 1443 and his first project was to drain it, as it was on top of the River Wandle and that wasn’t entirely ideal. The charity notes that part of the original north wing is thought to have survived, just behind the frontages which were redone in 1875. There’s also a Second World War air raid shelter on the premises somewhere according to the listed building record.

    This was the only modern plaque I saw in Croydon during my two days there, although I’m sure there were more somewhere about….