Joan pointed out the correct origin of the marble on the Heritage Walk and it is also described in the attached article. In 1895 construction had commenced of Westminster Cathedral, the interior of which is also lavishly decorated with marble. By the time Surrey House was being built the Cathedral was nearing completion but the costs were running over budget. Canon law decrees that a church must not be consecrated until it is free of debt, so cuts had to be made. Skipper heard that a consignment of marble originally destined for the Cathedral was being offered for sale at a substantial discount and he persuaded the board of Norwich Union to purchase it and changed his plans accordingly. The rest is history and the result is here for us to enjoy today. Please select the following link to find out more about Surrey House:
Monday, 28 August 2023
Sunday, 20 August 2023
The Pastons and Ketts Rebellion
To Supplement Colin’s talk on Tuesday here is an article related to Kett’s Rebellion. I have tried to find an article with a slightly different take on this topic and this one describes the involvement of the Paston family during the rebellion. They were involved but what role did they play? Please select the following link to find out:
https://www.thisispaston.co.uk/kett01.html
Sunday, 13 August 2023
Travels with Pevsner - Architectural Treats of Norfolk
Below is a link that was recommended by Mike H in the past and I thought it worthwhile including again. Sir Nikolaus Pevsner was an architectural historian who wrote detailed county-by-county guides. In this film Dan Cruikshank follows the Pevsner guide for Norfolk. Please select the following link and press play:
Sunday, 30 July 2023
Ten Towers Trail
I posted this link onto our Facebook page recently. It is a 15 mile walk that includes 10 churches. For those that don’t fancy the 15 miles in one go, the walks can be shortened - just download the map and have a look:
Robert Catton Prior of Norwich
Colin posted this article on our Facebook page above Prior Catton and I thought I would draw your attention to it. The door plate in Norwich Cathedral bears the letters, 'RCPN’ which refers to Robert Catton who was the Prior during the 15th century, so who was this man? It appears he was far from perfect during his reign as Prior of Norwich and also as Abbot of St Albans. The latter post came as a result of winning the favour of Henry VIII for a while. Here is the link to find out more about the not so perfect Prior:
Sunday, 23 July 2023
Kelmscott Books
Here are some of Morris's collection of Kelmscott Books held in the Norfolk Heritage Centre:
Nuremberg Chronicles (below): One of the most lavishly decorated books - which outlines the history of the world since creation.
The History of Godefrey of Boloyne (below): the last of Morris’s reprints of the works translated and printed by William Claxton, England’s first printer.
News from Nowhere (below): is arguably Morris’s most influential book combining utopian socialism with aspects of science fiction.
William Morris
Following on from the session last Tuesday here is an article of William Morris. He is well known for his arts and crafts but he was also a shop keeper businessman, designed wall paper, a writer, collector of books, a master if calligraphy and also had strong socialist views which drove him to found the Socialist League. Here is a link to find out more:
https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/introducing-william-morris