Each year ASHER organises one or two Outside Visits, comprising day trips by coach to a venue of likely interest to our members, e.g. country houses and/or gardens, art galleries or museums. Lunch is organised for the group and booked in advance, either at the venue itself or a nearby restaurant/inn. Details of future visits, including the Booking Forms, are given in the the annual Newsletter.
Doddington Hall, Gardens and Sculpture Exhibition
Our first Outside Visit of 2024 was to Doddington Hall, on the outskirts of Lincoln. Begun in 1595 by Robert Smythson, this late Elizabethan ‘prodigy mansion’ was built for Thomas Tailor, the Registrar to the Bishop of Lincoln, and deliberately sited with a direct view of Lincoln Cathedral from an upstairs gallery window. It was completed in 1600, and has seen over 400 years of unbroken family occupation, passing through successive generations of four different families, in all cases through the female line.
In 1749 the Hall was inherited by John Delaval (of Seaton Delaval, Northumberland), who carried out extensive internal redecoration. He incorporated the elegant Georgian style, and established the eclectic collection of paintings, ceramics, tapestries and furniture which we enjoyed in our excellent Guided Tours of the Hall.
The surrounding Gardens have been restored by the present owners, Claire Jarvis and James Birch, and at the time of our visit were spectacularly enhanced by a biennial international sculpture exhibition. Interested members of our party were treated to a special tour by James of their unique Military Uniform Collections, as a highlight of what was a most enjoyable day for us all.
Keith Bottomley
Auckland Castle, Mining Art Gallery, and Faith Museum
ASHER’s second visit of the year was to the Auckland Project in Bishop Auckland, the inspired brainchild of retired investment banker Jonathan Ruffer. We began with a guided tour of Auckland Castle, the former Palace of the Prince Bishops of Durham, from the spiritual heart of St Peter’s Chapel, through the state rooms and Bishops’ private apartments, culminating in the formal dining room, with its unique portraits of the 12 sons of Jacob, by the famous Spanish painter, Francisco de Zurbaran.
After lunch in the Old Library of the Castle, our afternoon was free to visit other attractions of the Auckland Project. The newly opened Faith Museum traced the fascinating religious heritage of Britain from its early prehistory, through the development of Christianity right up to the diverse variety of religious faiths in the 21st century. The Mining Art Gallery reflected the huge local significance of the Durham mining industry, economically, socially and personally, with moving pictures of what it was like working down the mines, painted by miners themselves.
Keith Bottomley