Reynolds Stone was a hugely talented engraver who spent much of his adult life in East Anglia, staying on after a degree at Cambridge to be an unofficial apprentice at the Cambridge University Press and experimenting with engraving. A story quoted on his official website goes that he met Eric Gill on a train, who [...]
Entries from June 29th, 2009
Reynolds Stone
June 29th, 2009 1 Comment
Tags: Bristish talent · east anglia · penguin books design · reynolds stone · times logo · wood engraving
Christchurch Mansion
June 24th, 2009 No Comments
The children of Ipswich are lucky indeed. Not only do they have an estimable town museum, they also have Christchurch Mansion, where they can go and develop their taste by looking at beautiful domestic objects from centuries past, in a beautiful old house surrounded by parkland for running around in afterwards.
The interiors are from every [...]
Tags: christchurch mansion · furniture · ipswich · museum
When a monkey is set to diagnose a bear
June 20th, 2009 1 Comment
Who knew that East Anglia was a noted producer of illuminated manuscripts back in the fourteenth century? Some of the best psalters now known of were painted at Gorleston, near Great Yarmouth. One of the most famous, the Macclesfield Psalter, was bought for the nation and is now at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge.
There is [...]
Tags: animals dressed up · cambridge · east anglia · fitzwilliam museum · gorleston · illuminated manuscripts · illustration · macclesfield psalter · psalter
Local food in Cambridge
June 18th, 2009 No Comments
Origin8 in Cambridge is a deli and cafe with a mission to to stock only food and drink produced in East Anglia, covering about the same area as this blog. They’ve been very energetic in their sourcing and despite the eyewateringly trendy name it’s a joy to visit. I stopped in and was struck by [...]
Tags: cafe · food miles · local food · norfolk and suffolk cheese · origin8 · place to eat in cambridge
Audley End
June 15th, 2009 4 Comments
The house at Audley End is the cut down relic of a much large Jacobean palace, and is surrounded by acres of lavish parkland mostly used these days for picnicing, sunbathing and concerts. Arriving is almost the best part – you stop at the gatehouse and then sweep along the enormous curved drive across the [...]
Tags: audley end · decoration · espalier fruit trees · gardening · greenhouses · historical gardens · historical re-enactment · nineteenth century life · organic garden · organic growing · servants quarters · stately home · victorian
Seasonal food, tented
June 12th, 2009 No Comments
Kate at All Things Considered points out that tonight is the launch night of an intriguing restaurant on the Norfolk coast that operates in a yurt. Their pitch is “simple, taste-driven food, prepared and served by a passionate bunch”. The restaurant is situated by a farm in the village of Thornham and they’ll be using [...]
Tags: droves orchard · local food · north norfolk · restaurant · seasonal food · yurt
Ipswich Museum
June 8th, 2009 4 Comments
Inching into Ipswich through an endless traffic jam on a wet Wednesday, I never expected to fall in love with it. Too many ugly 1980s buildings, depressing 1970s bungalows and grey drizzle turning everything it touched sticky and sad.
And yet… that’s just the face it shows to casual visitors. As soon as I parked the [...]
Tags: animal bones · ethnography · fish skull · fossils · giant stuffed woolly mammoth · ipswich museum · stuffed animals · victorian curiosities
Denmark to Suffolk
June 4th, 2009 2 Comments
In the small Suffolk village of Fressingfield opposite the old flint parish church is an outpost of a purist Scandanavian aesthetic. A building that in the last century was the village post office is now the Pottery, workshop and showroom of Lars P. Soendergaard Gregersen, a Danish potter who makes domestic pieces in hand thrown [...]
Tags: china · craftsman · east anglia · fressingfield · hand thrown porcelain · pottery · soendergaard design · suffolk
Now with added map
June 2nd, 2009 2 Comments
I just wanted to draw your attention to the fact that from now on I’ll be plotting the geographic location of the things I write about on a google map, which can be found though the ‘navigate using map’ link on the right sidebar. It seems appropriate given the heavily localised nature of the blog, [...]
Tags: cartography · east anglia · google map
Walking in the footsteps of giants and legends
June 2nd, 2009 2 Comments
I just stumbled on a fascinating little site that simply pulls together all the myths and legends associated with specific places in Norfolk and Suffolk, whether it’s a secret tunnel or a giant’s grave they will be there. It’s a labour of love by a chap called Mike Burgess in Lowestoft, who keeps it updated [...]
Tags: fairies · folklore · giants · legend · myth · norfolk · secret tunnels · suffolk