Tags
architecture, Dragon Hall, King Street, Lesser Black-backed Gull, medieval buildings, Norfolk, Norwich, redundant churches, River Wensum, St Etheldreda, St Peter Parmentergate, The Music House, Traveller's Joy, Wensum Lodge
It is some time since I wrote a post about Norwich and as my younger daughter Elinor has started attending some art courses in the city I thought I would share some photographs I have taken recently.
Elinor is no longer at the City College so is attending art classes at Wensum Lodge which is owned by the City Council.
The City Council has converted old riverside buildings into classrooms and studios and this is where Elinor is learning Portraiture on Tuesday and Drawing and Painting on Saturday. (She also goes to the Theatre Royal, Norwich every Thursday evening for drama classes.)
The River Wensum flows through the centre of the city of Norwich.
While Elinor studies, I take myself off and walk through the city. Wensum Lodge is located in King Street which is full of ancient buildings and was inhabited by the richest merchants in medieval times.
‘Parmentergate’ means the street of the parmenters: parchment makers or leatherworkers. As the word became obsolete the street name changed and became Mountergate but the church retained the original name.
The Music House was built in the 12th century and in 1225, Isaac Jurnet, a member of one of the wealthiest Jewish families in England at the time, bought it from a man called John Curry. During the reign of Elizabeth I the house became the headquarters of the Norwich waits and minstrels and thereafter became known as the Music House. The front you see in this photo is 17th century but behind the left hand gable are the remains of the 12th century building constructed at right-angles to the street. This original 12th century building was extended later in that century, in 1175, with a north-south range where the current 17th century front stands, making an L-shaped building. The new part consisted of a single-aisled hall with an undercroft (cellar, basement, storeroom) which was at ground level when built, but is lower now. The aisle of the hall was removed in 1480 and another undercroft built. Most of the hall was removed when the 17th century front was constructed. The building is owned by the City Council and is part of the Wensum Lodge range and can be accessed from the inner yard. Concerts are performed in the building.
St Etheldreda was a daughter of King Anna of East Anglia. Anna had four daughters, all of whom were made saints. Etheldreda founded a monastery on the Isle of Ely (in Cambridgeshire) and died there in 679.
I am surprised to find I didn’t photograph Dragon Hall this time, but below are some photos I took of the hall a couple of years ago.
The Dragon Hall dating from 1420, is a merchant’s hall which belonged to Robert Toppes who was made mayor of the city four times. It is virtually unique in Western Europe in being a medieval trading hall built by an individual rather than a guild. One of the spandrels in the roof of the grand hall upstairs is carved with the figure of a dragon.
I believe the gull is a Lesser Black-backed Gull ( Larus fuscus) in its winter plumage.
Thanks for visiting!
I have used the following sites and books :
http://www.tournorfolk.co.uk/norwich.html
The Medieval Churches of the City of Norwich by Nicholas Groves
The Little Book of Norwich by Neil R Storey
Norwich by Stephen Browning
Harrap’s Wild Flowers by Simon Harrap
RSPB Complete Birds of Britain and Europe by Rob Hume
avian101 said:
That was a great tour my dear Clare, It’s amazing to see those building in such great shape being so old! Thank you! 🙂
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you so much for your comment, HJ! I hope you’ve had a good weekend 🙂
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Lavinia Ross said:
I enjoyed the tour Clare, and always learn something new when I visit this blog: spandrels, waits, parmemters. The Music House is interesting, and rich in history. If those old walls could talk!
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you, Lavinia. I often wonder that same thing!
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Helen said:
Like the others who have commented, I enjoyed the look round Norwich and learning new words such as ‘parmenter’.
It’s interesting to see the architecture of different places. I was struck by how clean Norwich looks.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Helen. Norwich isn’t the worst city I’ve visited but it can get a bit messy over the weekend with the shoppers, clubbers and football fans.
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Helen said:
Yes, people do have a habit of leaving their rubbish lying around.
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susanpoozan said:
Loved all that red brick, so colourful.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Susan.
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mypeacockbooks said:
Lovely photographs and some wonderful new information on Norwich which I didn’t know. I do love seeing old buildings and I’m always fascinated with how well preserved some of them are (I especially love seeing medieval buildings with top floors jutting out a little ). I like your picture of the gull 🙂 cameras can be fiddly with their focus sometimes but I see the gull clearly and all your pictures are wonderful 🙂
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Clare Pooley said:
You’re very kind, Cat – thank-you!
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helenJbrown said:
Red brick buildings remind me of cheese sandwiches wrapped in greaseproof paper for some unearthly reason. I too love the soft brick and complimentary cobbles and Dragon Hall looks theatrical dressed up in all its history. Enjoyed the trip round Norwich Clare, thank you.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Helen. You’ve got me wondering why you think of greaseproof paper covered cheese sandwiches! Food for thought 🙂
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quietsolopursuits said:
I also enjoyed your tour of Norwich! I was also impressed by how well maintained the buildings are for their age, and how clean it was all around town. You never see that in our inner cities, they look like garbage dumps.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Jerry. Those buildings are well looked after and most are still lived in and/or used regularly. The city isn’t as clean as this at the weekend but still not as bad as some places.
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KerryCan said:
It’s a charming place to while away some time! I suspect you’ll be there a lot, with Elinor?
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Kerry. It is a pleasant place to be and yes, either I or Richard will be there very often. It is not worth our while going home while Elinor is studying so we try to find things to amuse ourselves for a couple of hours.
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Jill Weatherholt said:
It sounds as though Elinor is staying busy. How nice that you can take advantage of the sights. Your photographs are amazing, Clare. Thanks so much for sharing with us. Enjoy your Sunday!
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Clare Pooley said:
You are very kind, Jill – thank-you. Elinor is trying to increase her portfolio as well as keeping busy and getting out of the house. She needs to get qualifications to enable her to get into art college. I hope you’ve had a great weekend! xo
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Jill Weatherholt said:
Yay Elinor! It was nice. I hope yours was as well. Have a great week, Clare!
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Clare Pooley said:
It was good, thank-you! Enjoy your week, Jill xo
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derrickjknight said:
Fascinating buildings and alleys
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Derrick.
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Antonio said:
very nice photos!
best regards from Italy
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Antonio!
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margaret21 said:
I haven’t been to Norwich since my interview at UEA for a place there (they only offered me a place on the waiting list so I went to Manchester instead). Your tour was an incentive to visit again, and soon.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Margaret. We’ll meet for coffee if you do.
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markspitzerdesigns said:
I liked the photo of shops, workshops, and dwellings for its freedom in shaping common materials into interesting forms and structures. So hard for modernists to do without being contrived – but fun when it works.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you, Mark. Many of these mixtures in style are happy accidents. Some work and some don’t. Norwich Council believes in filling in the gaps in the city rather than spreading outwards into the surrounding countryside.
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Andrea Stephenson said:
Thank you for the introduction Clare. I’ve never been to Norwich and wouldn’t really know what to expect, but I probably wouldn’t have expected the range of history you’ve described.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Andrea. Norwich was a very important city in the Middle Ages, second only to London at one time. It became less important when the wool trade dwindled.
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Laurie Graves said:
That’s one arty daughter you have! Yay! A very charming place. One more to add to my fantasy Great Britain tour.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you, Laurie. Elinor hopes to study at the University of the Arts in Norwich but needs to get more qualifications first and add to her portfolio.
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New Hampshire Garden Solutions said:
I love seeing all of the old buildings, It gives me a sense of what my ancestors lived like, and what they would have seen.
Too bad that they painted over what look like flint walls on the oldest building.
It sounds like Elinor is well on her way to becoming an artist. Good for her!
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you, Allen. Yes, they have painted over the flint on that building. It may have been to stabilize it if the surface was beginning to disintegrate or crumble. Elinor is working hard on her art and wants to study at the art college in Norwich.
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tootlepedal said:
You found a lot of interesting places and buildings to show us. Thank you.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you, Tom.
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dobetteralways said:
Thank you for sharing another journey, I always want to visit the places you show us.
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Clare Pooley said:
How very kind! Thank-you!
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Nathan Rogers said:
Great tour! Mossy cobbles always brings back memories or my home town
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Nathan. I seem to remember you came from the Peak District?
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Nathan Rogers said:
Yes good memory! My home town was Leek. I get homesick sometimes but soon snap out of it when I consider the reality of not being to go anywhere because of the rain!
Kidding. I’d like to head back over in a couple of years.
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Clare Pooley said:
We love Leek and visit whenever we can. Unfortunately, it was impossible this year but we’ll be back there next year 🙂
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Cynthia Reyes said:
I’m glad to hear that Elinor is taking art classes in the city, Clare, and that you are able to take us on a pictorial tour like this one. I think my favourite spot is Stepping Lane, though it looks very narrow!
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Cynthia. Yes, Stepping Lane is *very* narrow!
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Richard Sutton said:
Thank you for this well researched and beautifully illustrated picture of Norwich. Like others, sadly, I’ve never been there. Thanks for taking us with you in this post. The river Wensum seems to add to the peace of the place. Well done for noticing the ‘Travellers Joy’.
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Clare Pooley said:
How very kind! Thank-you, Richard!
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Gallivanta said:
Wensum College looks lovely. I am glad to hear about Elinor’s art classes as well as her drama class. Would you be interested in doing art classes too? I am looking forward to seeing more of Norwich when it’s your turn to wait for Elinor. Maybe you could join a band of ‘waits’ to mark the time while you wait. 🙂 Traveller’s Joy travelled to New Zealand, where it is not regarded with any joy at all. Not these days, anyway. It is very invasive.
By the way, I had lovely communications from Akismet. They fixed my WordPress problems. Hooray. Thanks for your help, too.
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Clare Pooley said:
I like the idea of joining the ‘waits’! One day, I think I might join an art class but at the moment I am so tense and anxious about all sorts of things that my only relief is in physical action! 🙂
Traveller’s Joy has the potential to be a plague with all its floating seeds. We don’t see a lot of it here for some reason.
I am so pleased your WP problems have been fixed. I found the technicians from Akismet quite charming and very helpful.
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Gallivanta said:
Ah yes, physical action aka walking is a great way to deal with tension/stress etc. I like ironing tea towels and handkerchiefs, too. Soothing.
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Clare Pooley said:
Soothing repetition!
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Gallivanta said:
Yep!
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Lisa G. said:
I also liked the little palladian style windows on that building – fancied it up a bit! And the travelers’ joy – it looks as if it’s inside that building and coming out through the window! But that’s probably not right. I feel bad about St. Ethelreda’s not being a church anymore, because it looks so old and nice; the other church looks a very different style.
I wish Elinor all the best, and hope you continue to find things of interest to do while she’s at her classes. xo
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Lisa! It does look like the Traveller’s Joy is coming out of a building but I think it was coming through a fancy open-work brick in a wall. There is a narrow area of overgrown garden on the other side of the wall.
I am really sorry that St Etheldreda’s isn’t used as a church any more too. I would love to be able to go inside and look around! I will have to find out when they have open days. There are other churches in the city which are closed and not used at all which is a real pity. Norwich isn’t a large city but it has very many churches, far more than it needs and can care for. It has the largest collection of urban medieval churches in northern Europe and some are too expensive for the parishioners to look after. Thank-you for your kind wishes, Lisa xo
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Lisa G. said:
About seventeen or eighteen years ago, we got a book in the library called The Year 1000 by a fellow named Lacey, I believe. It described life in Europe, mostly England, at the last millenium, and the thing I remember most was that there was one priest for every ten people a that time. Amazing! So, no wonder there are so many churches.
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Clare Pooley said:
Yes, exactly! We now have one priest for every ten churches!
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Aquileana said:
Three cheers to Elinor…. and best of luck to her, dear Clare.
The post is beautiful, such a picturesque town… I would love to walk those little streets! A promenade by the River Wensum sounds delightful!.
Sending much love & best wishes 😀 xx
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you so much my dear Aquileana! 🙂
With lots of love and best wishes ❤ xx
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quercuscommunity said:
Looks like you had an interesting walk – with plenty to see. Glad to see you back writing. 🙂
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you, Simon. Norwich is an easy and interesting city to walk round.
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quercuscommunity said:
🙂
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Annika Perry said:
Clare, your post is a real treat and I think you would be an asset to the tourist board of Norwich! 😃 I’ve only been to the city once and saw some of the beautiful buildings you describe but alas not many – something I’ll have to rectify soonest possible! Your daughter’s college is a terrific regeneration of the riverside buildings and must be inspiring to work there. Thank you for sharing with us…nothing like an enjoyable virtual tour on a grey Saturday. Wishing you a great weekend. 🌻🍂
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you very much, Annika! I hope your weekend has been good so far 🙂
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Sheryl @ Flowery Prose said:
Clare, I always so enjoy your photo essays – I love your photos and the immense amount of detail and research you put into these. You really know how to capture the beauty and expression of a place! Have a wonderful weekend!
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you so much, Sheryl! I hope you are having a good weekend 🙂
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Liz said:
It is a long time since I was last in Norwich, so it is great to be reminded, via your lovely photos, of its amazing history and beautiful architecture, thank you! 🙂
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Clare Pooley said:
My pleasure, Liz and thank-you! 🙂
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bitaboutbritain said:
Loved that tour, Clare; your observant eye and gentle commentary guides us all along. I need to spend some time in Norwich, I’ve only been there a few times. Glad to hear you’re planning on visiting the Island – I have many happy memories of holidays there. I’ll be adding a few ideas to ABAB’s directory shortly and will probably do some featured places too on the blog.
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bitaboutbritain said:
I also meant to say – what a wonderful environment to go to college in!! She’s a lucky girl.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you, Mike.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you so much, Mike! Such a lovely comment!
I am looking forward to visiting the Island. I haven’t been there since about 1981 when I stayed for one night in East Cowes! I went a couple of times with my parents in the 60’s so I’m sure it has changed a bit since then! One visit in 1967 we were lucky to see the Queen Mary and the Queen Elizabeth as they sailed past. I look forward to your features and will visit your directory for ideas.
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Agurl said:
Nice shots you have there.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you! 🙂
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Charlotte Hoather said:
There’s a King Street in Knutsford where I went to school and college and the buildings are rather like these buildings with narrow pavements. There is no gorgeous river running through though just the M6 :). Hope Elinor is enjoying her courses.
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Clare Pooley said:
Thank-you Charlotte! Elinor is really enjoying her courses and is becoming much more confident.
My father-in-law (who I never met) was a policeman and was based in Knutsford for some years.
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Sulaiman Hafeez said:
Thanks for the wonderful tour. Hope I get the privilege of visiting it live once 💕
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Clare Pooley said:
My pleasure and thank-you!
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Resa said:
This is wonderful, thank you so much, Clare!
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Clare Pooley said:
My pleasure, and thank-you, Resa!
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