Coldharbour – An Important Medieval London House

Reblogged from A Medieval Potpourri @sparkypus.com A segment of the Visscher Panorama of London 1616 showing Coldharbour after the earlier medieval house had been demolished by the Earl of Shrewsbury c.1585 and rebuilt up to the waterfront.  The rebuild incorporated many tenements ‘now letten out for great rents to people of all sorts’ (Stow).  …

Another “Mary Rose” is found….

  I well remember all the excitement when Henry VIII’s Mary Rose was found and brought to the surface for the first time since his reign. The event was broadcast live and we watched as she reappeared inch by slow inch. Yes, it was quite a story. But then, Henry VIII (love him or hate…

Digging up our monarchs; no, not Richard III this time….!

I’m told that even now, if you purchase a plot of ground in which to put your loved ones to rest, the chances are they’ll only lie in peace for eighty years, at which time they are removed and new occupants move in. Well, for centuries our dead haven’t always been left to enjoy their…

London: 2000 years of history (channel 5)

Who let Dan Jones out? At least, as in his last outing, he is accompanied both by a historian (Suzannah Lipscomb) and an engineer (Rob Bell), narrating and illustrating almost two millennia of the city’s past. In the first episode, we were taken through the walled city of “Londinium” being built and rebuilt after Boudicca’s…

IS THIS THE FACE OF KATHERINE de VALOIS?

Catherine de Valois wooden funeral effigy on the left and the stone head thought to represent her on the right. Westminster Abbey is the home to a collection of unique and wonderful medieval wooden funeral effigies.  These are to go on show once again in June 2018 with the opening the Abbey’s new Jubilee Galleries.…

So where exactly is “Orwell”?

Harwich Town station is the end of the line, a twenty-five minute ride from Manningtree and the north-eastern extremity of Essex. As you cross the main road from the station car park, turning left takes you past a series of old buildings with Harwich Society plaques amid a modern setting. Some of these commemorate people such…

The Bones in the Urn again!…a 17th Century Hoax?

UPDATED POST @ sparkypus.com A Medieval Potpourri https://sparkypus.com/2020/05/14/the-bones-in-the-urn-again-a-17th-century-hoax/ 19th century painting of the Henry VII Chapel by an unknown artist.  The entrance to the area where the urn stands is to the left of the tomb of Henry VII Helen Maurer, in her wonderful article, Whodunnit: The Suspects in the Case  mentioned in the notes  ‘As for why…

Rei(g)ned in?

I don’t know how to tell you this but Dan Jones has made further appearances on our television screens this spring. Thankfully, both C5 three-part series have featured him as a sidekick to Suzannah Lipscomb, so his prejudices against various monarchs have had little exercise. The first of these was about Elizabeth I, featured Lily Cole…

Olde London Towne (2)

Following our previous post, This tells us about some specific mediaeval buildings ands structures.