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Landmark from earlier this year

 As I chatted on about the Ruin I thought I would add a post about a visit to another Landmark Trust building we went to in February of this year.  Every year a small group of friends meet up and enjoy the luxury of a comfortable gaff to eat, drink, be merry ,do jigsaws, some bracing walks and generally catch up and blow away post Christmas blues.  So far we have always met up in a large Landmark Trust house and this year was no exception.  We went to Shelwick Court  in Hereford.  

Another amazingly grand house - rescued from total ruin - saved by the fact it for no evident reason has a medieval hall as the upstairs room.  This room was not original to the building but it is believed it must have been moved there at some point to recycle, reuse and reduce building costs - who knows - it was discovered when the building was about to be demolished because it was so derelict the owners were living in a caravan in the grounds...

Each Landmark trust building has a very comprehensive documented history on site - complete with before and after pictures and this transformation was unbelievable.  The building was very run down trees growing through the roof -  no substantial floors, windows, roof etc and now its a beautiful restored manor house with a fabulous ceiling which we were able to call home for a few days.  

The building itself was great and the land countryside around it was good for local walks - We also went into Hereford and visited the cathedral which is pretty stupendous and houses both a chained library - very game of thrones - and the Mappa Mundi the largest oldest existing map of Europe. It is drawn on a single sheet of vellum and it dates back to approx 1300 and is exquisitely illustrated and decorated with line drawings and some very strange people and animals,  It is mapped from a christian point of view and has Jerusalem at the centre - it's very very fab - so much so I bought a copy of it which now hangs on our dining room wall.  

Hereford is a nice town -  dominated by the cathedral - I'm sure with more time to explore it can offer much more - we were very pleased to find an excellent farm shop that sold the best homemade sausage ever - which 3/4's of the party bought and had for supper once back home in out own kitchens.  It was quite funny to think we were all sitting down to pretty much the same meal but in our own spaces....

Next year in our quest to complete all the Scottish tower house Landmark have - we have booked Ascog House on Bute - watch this space....

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