This morning I checked out of my B&B and headed down to do some quick shopping for a new jacket that fits me better and found one, plus a zippered sweater, so I am tossing my old raincoat out before I leave here. It is about two sizes too big! It is also not warm enough for the recent cold weather.
Today is Mary Arden's Farm. It is not as famous for being where Shakespeare's mother grew up, but as a working 16th Century working farm. There are characters there who work the land as was done then and raise animals for their meat as their food.
They try to raise older varieties of animals when they can.
Love the stone walls, wooden beams, and roof of this building! Notice the curved horizontal beam. It was not curved because of time of weight put upon it, but because they used bent trees and did not bother to cut the lumber to make it even. They probably used only draw knives to make the sides square.
This small building held a dining area for the farm workers.
The farm workers invited us all in to watch them eat and to get a lecture on manners that would have been strictly required during those times. Lunch consisted of a vegetable "pottage," fish cakes because they were required to eat sea fish on Satudays, a cooked salad of greens, and bread and cookies of some sort. Fish requirements was by decree of Elizabeth I to support the British fishing fleet so it would be available for conversion for war should war come.
The meal took about an hour with the farm workers staying in character and interacting with the audience.
This would have been the dining room of the farm owner.
The farm kitchen.
Kitchen garden.
Laundry hanging out to dry.
UK first floor is our second floor.
Look at the wear on these stair treads. The first/second floor would originally have been just an attic but was converted later.
Again, look at the beams.
This door would have been cut after many years, but look at what they had to do to support the beam going across the middle. It took a lot of effort to add this door.
All these beams were held together woth wooden pegs. Nails were very expensive and used only when necessary.
Strange looking goat!
There are two tiny chicks peeking out from under their mother's wings on this chilly day.
What a roof!
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