Old Market, Hereford

The Old Market Hereford is confusingly named. Yes, it was the site of an old market, but it has been completely redeveloped and everything about it shouts "new". Consequently, anyone going along hoping for some traditional atmosphere, history, old-style shops and black and white timber framing, will be disappointed because everywhere is glass, steel, concrete and brick. The owners clearly think the architecture doesn't have sufficient appeal because  a few times a year they change the "mobile" decoration that hangs above the main shopping street. This summer giant flip-flops greeted the visitor.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Sony DSC-RX100

The Kyneburgh Tower, Gloucester

The Kyneburgh Tower in Kimbrose Square, Gloucester, is a tall (16.2 metres) piece of street sculpture. It is the work of Tom Price and dates from 2011. The piece features 60 horizontal hoop-like elements made of steel and can be viewed from afar and from inside. It isn't to my taste but I did find the view from underneath, looking upwards quite interesting. I was reminded of contour lines on a map. As is the way in England the locals have given it their own name, disregarding the reference to the Saxon princess who is the patron saint of the city: they call it the "kebab".

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Sony DSC-RX100

Purple sage

Sometimes it's hard to put into words why you like a plant: with some however, it's quite easy. I like purple sage for its individual green and purple colours, for the way these work together, and for the shape and, more especially the texture of its leaves. I particularly liked this display at Berrington Hall, Herefordshire, for the healthy, lush growth, something we have never quite achieved with the plant in our garden.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Sony DSC-RX100

Former Paraclete Chapel, Walford

A morning cycle ride took us past this former Paraclete Chapel near Walford, Herefordshire. It was the private chapel of a country estate and was built in 1905-6 by the noted architect, George Bodley. Today it is the concert hall of a company whose headquarters is located in a local country house. For the passer by the most notable feature is the topiary work in the area where one would expect to see gravestones.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Sony DSC-RX100

Boats by the River Wye at Chepstow

The River Wye flows into the River Severn at Chepstow. Both of these watercourses are navigable and consequently, until the advent of the railways in the nineteenth century, they carried significant river traffic. Evidence of this can still be seen in Chepstow in the form of warehouses etc. Today all the boats on the River Wye (seen above near its confluence with the Severn) are engaged in pleasure of one form or another. Shortly after taking this photograph we saw two mud-covered canoeists who had travelled down the Wye and scrambled up the tidal mud with their craft - pleasure of sorts I suppose.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Opulent medieval clothing

In July we attended the Tewkesbury Medeval Festival. This is billed as Europe's largest medieval re-enactment and, from the scale of the event, I can well believe that is the case. As well as people dressed in the finery and militaria of the period there were musicians, entertainers, food, and stalls selling everything the would-be medievalist might require. The rich materials shown in the photograph form part of a tunic, one of many for sale. As in the modern world, the clothing was available to meet the needs of the humblest serf and the highest nobility, as well as every class between.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Ledbury streetscape

I recently bought a new mobile phone that features a rather better camera than my previous phone. I've taken a few shots with it, testing its capabilities under varying conditions, and have used it for a couple of images that I'd have been unable to get because I wasn't carrying any of my "real" cameras. This streetscape of Ledbury, Herefordshire, features the well-known seventeenth century Market House. However, it wasn't the building that caught my eye so much as the mottled sky and the bright splash of the red car amongst the generally more subdued colours.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Phone

St Mary, Kempley

The small Norman church of St Mary at Kempley in Gloucestershire lies some way from the village's main cluster of buildings. An early twentieth century church of architectural significance now stands there, and St Mary's has been left in the care of English Heritage and is managed by the Friends of Kempley Church. The structure has the oldest timber roof of any building in England, and the chancel and nave feature some of the best preserved medieval wall paintings in Britain.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Earthenware jars

Today's containers are made in large factories, often shipped to customers in different countries, and betray little of their origins. Not so with vessels of the Victorian period. They often proudly proclaim either their maker's name, the place of their manufacture, the name of the recipient, the place of the recipient's business, or a mixture of some or all of these - as in the examples above photographed in the town of Chepstow, Monmouthshire.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Squares and octagons

The medieval church at Croft, Herefordshire, stands only a few yards from Croft Castle, a former medieval castle that was converted into a stately home. Like all such churches it speaks of the well-to-do owners next door through the state of its general fabric and its tombs. When I visited the building I took a lot of shots of the the more conventional subjects. However, the one I want to post first shows the, to my mind, attractive worn tiles of part of its floor. This pattern of squares and octagons was popular in the eighteenth century and my guess is they date from a restoration at that time.


photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10