Reservoir, Dunster Castle

The highest point within the walls of Dunster Castle is, essentially, a lawn encircled with flower beds, shrubs and trees. However, hidden underground and entered by a door is the former reservoir of the castle which supplied it with water. It was built in 1870, one of a number of improvements made at the time by the owner, and held 40,000 gallons. In 1897 the water was being supplied to houses in the village, quite a luxury for rural dwellers at this time. Today it is empty and features an audio-visual presentation. The photograph shows my wife on the installed stairs. We had popped inside when a light shower of rain appeared (hence the rain hat).

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon Z 5

Drawing Room, Dunster Castle

A drawing room is not what it seems: it is, in fact, a "withdrawing room". In a country house, or even a smaller house (though with pretensions) ladies and/or gentlemen went there for entertainment after a meal had ended, or for a greater degree of privacy than was available elsewhere. In England such a room began to appear in the plans of larger houses in the mid-seveteenth century and remained popular into the twentieth century. This drawing room at Dunster Castle, Somerset, appealed to me and prompted a photograph because of the pleasant light from an adjoining garden room.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone