6 Comments CherryPie on Jun 18th 2011
An information board near to Craster harbour was very informative:
Crastor Harbour
…an important cultural landmark within the Northumberland Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty…
Craster developed as a fishing village around a small natural harbour formed between the outlying rocks of Little Carr and Muckle Carr. The traditional fishing boat of the North East Coast, the coble, allowed Craster fishermen to survive heavy seas and negotiate a precarious landing.
Herring once formed the staple catch for the Craster fleet. A large herring curing business became established in the village. Curing of imported herring continues and the Craster Kipper remains a famous delicacy. Today local boats fish for crabs, lobster and salmon.
The present harbour was constructed in 1906 in memory of Captain Craster killed in the Tibetan expedition of 1904. The large concrete foundation at the end of the south pier formed the base of two silos used to store whinstone chippings. Whinstone was quarried and crushed in what is now the car park. It was then exported from the harbour, to be used for road building.
Geology
The whin sill, a igneous rock intrusion in limestone created millions of years ago, dominates the landscape and forms the crags and quarries on the East side of the Reserve. Its grey dolerite stone appears in many other places across Northumberland, most noticeably along the Roman wall and at the coast where it forms the landscape of the Farne islands and the foundations of many castles.
The information board then provides some information on Dunstanburgh Castle. I have my own take on that castle here.
For more of this weeks PhotoHunt pictures check out tnchick.
12 Comments CherryPie on Jun 17th 2011
6 Comments CherryPie on Jun 16th 2011
by Kathleen Raine
Within the flower there lies a seed,
Within the seed there springs a tree,
Within the tree there spreads a wood.In the wood there burns a fire,
And in the fire there melts a stone,
Within the stone a ring of iron.Within the ring there lies an O
Within the O there looks an eye,
In the eye there swims a sea,And in the sea reflected sky,
And in the sky there shines the sun,
Within the sun a bird of gold.Within the bird there beats a heart,
And from the heart there flows a song,
And in the song there sings a word.In the word there speaks a world,
A word of joy, a world of grief,
From joy and grief there springs my love.Oh love, my love, there springs a world,
And on the world there shines a sun
And in the sun there burns a fire,Within the fire consumes my heart
And in my heart there beats a bird,
And in the bird there wakes an eye,Within the eye, earth, sea and sky,
Earth, sky and sea within an O
Lie like the seed within the flower.
12 Comments CherryPie on Jun 15th 2011
This is a picture on 18th century glass painted by Thomas Jervais.
This panel was restored in 2000:
The glass panel had been broken in many places an repaired with lead over the last century which was not sympathetic to the original construction. The panel was restored for the National Trust in 200 by Alfred Fisher.
The painting was dismantled by cutting away the lead and removing the putty that had been used to seal the glass. Following the dismantling, it was found that most of the edges of the glass had been cut back to allow the repair leads to be inserted without increasing the size of the panel. This made it impossible to obtain the perfect joining of the pieces and an infill of epoxy resin used in the joints.*
*Printed on an information sheet at the property.
8 Comments CherryPie on Jun 14th 2011
Climate is what you expect, weather is what you get.
Robert A. Heinlein
8 Comments CherryPie on Jun 12th 2011
