People can be forgiven for thinking that the name, The Shambles, is given to a picturesque hodge-podge of old buildings. Looking at it today that is what The Shambles in York, the most famous English example, appears to be. However, this name was given to buildings that were slaughterhouses and places where butchers congregated to sell their meat and offal. The Shambles in Monmouth is hidden away on a bank above the River Monnow and consists of 24 arches and rooms built of sandstone with brick-vaulted roofs. It was built in 1837 and serves the double purpose of supporting a road above and giving space for the slaughter and butchery of animals. A number of the rooms still have the pulleys and meat hooks associated with their original purpose. Such is its location, it must be overlooked by the vast majority of visitors to the town, and is probably unknown to more than a few residents.
photo © T. Boughen Camera: Sony DSC-RX100
