Not to mention wood-carvers, antique dealers. pargetters, romantic roses
and weathered wood. All encountered on a stroll around Lavenham.
The door of the Guildhall,
Note the elaborate carving of the wood all around the door.
There's a Museum inside dedicated to preserving Lavenham's history.
The most photographed lady in Lavenham.
Spinning has always intrigued me.
"Practice is all it takes," she assured me,
"my first effort produced yarn thick enough to haul The Queen Mary!"
Upstairs a loom showing the range of colours available.
There were many items displayed recording the history
of the towns buildings and its people.
But wool was what made the town special.
From the upstairs room of the Guildhall
you could look out on to the Market Square.
If it looks a bit spooky maybe it's because it was the scene of
a Vincent Price film, "The Witchfinder General".
More recently that scallywag Harry Potter showed up
to film in 2010.
Also the last episode of the TV series "Lovejoy"
was filmed here. The title?
"Last Tango In Lavenham"
Blimey!
All these crooked buildings have led to speculation that the rhyme
about the crooked man who lived in a crooked house has
its origins here. No real evidence for that.
However the lady who wrote "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" did live in Lavenham.
Her name was Jane Taylor and she lived in Shilling Street
during the nineteenth century.
A star is also featured strongly in the arms of the de Vere family,
who left their mark all over the place in Lavenham,
particularly on the church.
The decorative plaster-work on the walls in the two pictures above
is called "pargetting" and is often seen in this area especially in the nearby town of Clare.
We may well go there one day.
So if you know someone with the name Pargetter you now know
what their ancestors got up to.
Marvellous textures in the weathered wood
on the side of some of the buildings.
I don't see why I shouldn't show you some roses
Don't they look good against the painted plaster?
And some folks could spend a lot of time looking for bargains
in this shop.
Room after room stretched back from the narrow shopfront,
all full of antiques and curios.
See what I mean?
Meanwhile back out on the street here's The Swan Hotel.
Much loved by the ladies of The Women's Institute and
the kind of place where you could safely take your granny.
Now in my first post about Lavenham I made a throwaway comment
wondering whether the wealth of the town was based on narcotics.
I thought I was being silly.
But believe it or not the notorious marijuana smuggler,
Howard Marks - alias Mr Nice - was
arrested in The Swan.
Take care.
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