ABC Spring 2013 - Fastly

a rts buildings collections bulletinhelen wyldInterest in the tapestry was high, and it was even reported, andillustrated, in The Times. One observer also noted that the design,with its rolling landscape dotted with landmarks, was reminiscent ofthe famous Sheldon tapestry maps, which had caused a sensation inthe world of English textiles in the preceding decades.The designer of the tapestry (and of the later armorial woven forLord Fairhaven) was Clifford Barber, who joined the CambridgeTapestry Company as a young man having trained at the CambridgeSchool of Art. He was the first locally-trained designer to join thedrawing office, and he stayed until the workshop closed in 1943. Hisprecise and skilful designs are perfectly in keeping with the collection of 17th-century tapestries at Anglesey Abbey, a reflection, nodoubt, of his experience in designing cartoons for missing sectionsof old tapestries under restoration.During the weaving of Anglesey Abbey, Lady Fetherstonhaugharranged to bring the Princess (later Queen) Mary to visitCambridge to see the work in progress. The future queen reportedly expressed great interest and this led, in 1935, to friends of KingGeorge V commissioning the firm to design and weave a tapestryof Windsor Castle to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of that year.The Royal Jubilee Tapestry was again designed by Barber, this timewith advice from Professor A. J. B. Wace, Keeper of Textiles at theVictoria & Albert Museum.8 The Jubilee tapestry originally hung inthe Guard’s Chamber at Windsor Castle. This project led to otherroyal commissions, including a set of embroidered throne covers forthe coronation of George VI in 1937.Despite these important commissions the 1930s saw a generaldecline for the Cambridge Tapestry Company, partly due to theimpact of the 1929 crash on the international art trade. LordFairhaven continued to take a keen interest, however, and in1937 he commissioned another new tapestry—The Arms of LordFairhaven (see page 1). The tapestry was modelled on one already inthe collection at Anglesey Abbey, The Arms of José Luis de Benavides,Marques de Caracena mentioned above, replacing the Spanish nobleman’s arms with Fairhaven’s (even constructing for him a fancifulpedigree), and playfully inserting a view of Anglesey Abbey intothe landscape below, in place of a view of an unidentified hilltoptown in the original. The two supporters, Mars and Minerva, areretained, as are the cherubs supporting the central shield on wideribbons—their features, so the story goes, based on those of two ofthe young women who wove the tapestry.Like the Anglesey Abbey panel, The Arms of Lord Fairhaven is signedwith the company’s CTC monogram and dated. A new monogram,in the form of two C s facing each other on either side of the shieldof the city of Cambridge, also appears on the lower galloon. This isa direct imitation of the mark used by the Brussels tapissiers of twoB s, standing for Brabant and Brussels, on either side of the city’splain red shield, a mark which survives on the Benavides armorial.Sadly the Arms of Lord Fairhaven was to be the last large-scaletapestry made by the Cambridge Tapestry Company. Not longafterwards a panel of Glamis Castle was begun for Queen Mary, butonly about an inch had been woven by 1942 when materials becameunobtainable. In 1939 much of the company’s stock had alreadybeen sold to the Royal School of Needlework. Lord Fairhaven andProfessor Wace made efforts to keep the weavers together, and aseries of letters and accounts now held at Anglesey Abbey indicatethat the former had a financial interest in the company in its lastyears, as summary accounts were submitted to him—showing an3‘Screen with Hunting Scene’, Cambridge Tapestry Company, c. .Embroidery, wool and canvas. Lanhydrock, The Robartes Collectionincreasing loss. Business was officially stopped in 1941 with theexception of jobs already in hand, and in March 1943 the premises atThompson’s Lane were vacated.The two tapestries at Anglesey Abbey remain the most impressive memorial to the skill and enterprise of the Cambridge TapestryCompany. The figurative designs, fine weave, and the use of silkand gold and silver thread exemplify techniques abandoned bymost modern tapestry workshops, but familiar to the Cambridgeweavers from their restoration work. The resulting tapestries couldbe dismissed as mere pastiches, but they also stand as a record of theirpatron’s unusual sensitivity to the tapestry medium and his desire tosupport a valuable local industry—not to mention the consummateskill of the Cambridge weavers, much of whose restoration worktoday no doubt goes unnoticed, as they would have intended.Helen Wyld, Tapestry Curator, National Trust12345678Catalogue entries on the tapestries at Anglesey Abbey can be found at: tw2091b.twsbroadband.co.uk/cambridgetapestry.htm. Accessed11 April 2013. This website includes extensive information relating to theCambridge Tapestry Company.Information kindly supplied by Sarah Foskett following her paper ‘TheTriumph of the Virgin: unravelling authenticities in a Glasgow Museums’tapestry’ at the conference The Real Thing?, University of Glasgow, 6-7December 2012.Judy Cheney, ‘The Cambridge Tapestry Company’, Cambridgeshire Guild ofSpinners and Dyers Newsletter, 14 January 1988 (n.p.).Inventory no. 883242; y.htm.Described in the Sydney Morning Herald, 8 June 1938.Independent Press and Chronicle, 19 October 1934.The Times, 9 January 1934, 27 July 1936; Clifford Barber, ‘A Little KnownCambridge Industry’, The Cam, May 1937, pp. 136-8; Clifford Barber, articlesin The Master Key, September and August 1936; ‘Peerless skills faded awayduring the war’, Cambridge Weekly News, 28 July 1988.

a rts buildings collections bulletin4LIGHTING FOR SPIRIT OF PLACE AT ATTINGHAMAt Attingham Park,the National Trust’sRegencymansionin Shropshire, theAttingham Re-discovered Project hasbeen painstakinglyconserving, restoringand re-presenting themansion’shistoricinteriors over thelast seven years. Theaim is not only toimprove historicalaccuracy and conservation performance,but also to increaseatmosphere and drawout the property’sSpirit of Place in order to deepen the visitor experience.In addition to focusing on the grand state rooms, theAttingham Re-discovered Project has recently been applying the same thoughtful approach to some of Attingham’scatering and retail facilities, recognising that the same Spiritof Place should ideally flow throughout all aspects of thevisitor experience. When some of those visitor facilities areactually within the historic mansion itself, a seamless sense ofthe property’s atmosphere is even more important, so that the‘spell’ is not broken. The Butler’s Pantry, on the male side ofAttingham’s domestic offices, is a subtle re-evocation of thebutler’s historic rooms, combined with an atmospheric ‘shopthat doesn’t feel like a shop’.The lighting is a critical element of achieving thissuspension of disbelief.It comprises concealedwarm white LED lighting in cupboards tosubtly highlight theproducts, LED stripsabove furniture to‘wash’ the walls, concealed LED spots, oillamps adapted to takebattery packs and coloured with gel to createa yellow glow, batterycandles and carbonfilament bulbs undercoolie shades.The products onsale are from the normal Trust’s range, butspecifically chosen to reflect the duties and responsibilities ofthe butler. Plastic packaging, sticky price labels and bar codesare banned—instead the items have hand-written browntags tied on with string and are wrapped for the customerin brown paper with co-ordinating tissue paper. The Butler’sPantry even has its own design device, adapted from a paperembosser belonging to one of the Berwicks; ‘B’ for Berwickand ‘B’ for Butler.The Butler’s Pantry lighting scheme was mastermindedby Treehouse Media (who have experience in television andlighting drama sets), working with the property’s Curatorand in-house electrician. A further collaborative project isbeing undertaken in Attingham’s stable block, the Grooms’Bookshop, opening March 2013.Sarah Kay, Project Curator

a rts buildings collections bulletin5‘SEA FENCIBLES’ ALONG THE DORSET COASTLieutenant John Twisden, signalman Baronet of Golden CapGnt images / joe cornishcrown copyrightolden Cap in west Dorsetthrough their centres. The rubble infillis the highest cliff on thecontained bricks, nails, meat bones,south coast. On its flatbuttons and worn coins of George IIIsummit are a line of four Bronze Age[see bibliograhy, Papworth].barrows. At the foot of its westernA search within the Admiraltyslope lie the ruins of medieval Stantonrecords at Kew found account books,St Gabriel chapel, abandoned in theletters and log books for Golden Cap.1840s. Thirty years earlier, a certainThey provided details of the signalLt. John Twisden had walked downstation, and also information aboutthe hill with his family and baptisedthe officer in charge. These, togetherhis children there.with other documentary sources,In prehistory, Golden Cap hadrevealed a fascinating personal story.been a place to look up to, a skylineJohn Twisden (1767-1853), born inon which to build monuments toPortsmouth, was the son of Williamremember the ancestors. Two hunTwisden (1741-71) and Mary Kirkdred years ago, the barrows were(1744-71). William should have beenaltered to create a signal station,the 7th Baronet Twisden of Bradand John Twisden was put in chargebourne in Kent, but he had beento scan the seas for the expecteddisinherited: his father, Sir Roger,Napoleonic invasion.disapproved of his marriage andThe soft geology of this stretchgave the title and estate to Wilof coast is affected by rapid coastalliam’s younger brother John Papillonerosion, and the 4000-year-old[Hatton and Hatton pp. 47-48].barrows on Golden Cap are likely toJohn’s father and mother both diedfall into the sea within the next 50within six months of each other inyears. In 2011, therefore, National1771. The orphan joined the RoyalTrust archaeologists carried out aNavy when he was 12 to become therescue excavation. Three of the fourservant of Admiral Geary and CaptainSignal mast with flags and canvas ballsbarrows were half-sectioned, and allClayton on HMS ‘Victory’. In 1781 hecontained evidence of the signal station. One mound had beensailed to America and the West Indies and became an Able Seamanflattened to create the foundation for a wooden signal house. Twoand then a Midshipman. By 1790 he was a Lieutenant, and in 1794of the neighbouring barrows had been cut back to enable anotherhe was given the command of the gun vessel ‘Fearless’ and then inhut to be built, and each of the three mounds had deep shafts cut1795 of the armed vessel ‘Alfred’. By December 1796 he had beenposted to the newly constructed Golden Cup Signal (as it wasknown at the time), a command that continued until 1814 [ADM17/101]. Lt. Twisden was under the command of Captain NickIngram, who was in charge of the whole Dorset coastal defencenetwork (the ‘sea fencibles’).John had married Ann Hammond in 1791. Altogether they hadthirteen children, of whom seven were born while he was in chargeof the signal station—three of them were baptised in the nowruined Stanton Chapel.The war with France between 1793 and 1815 created a real dangerof coastal raids and invasion along the south coast. Therefore in1794 a signalling system was devised, and a series of stations wasset up. Golden Cap was not originally a signal site, and does notseem to have been in full operation until 1798.The signal stations were usually built of wood and erected ascheaply as possible—the Golden Cup station cost 109 [Clammer2012 p.17]. One assumes that once put together, each station originally looked much the same as the next, although as time wentby each one may have been modified by the residents [Clammer2012 p.21; ADM 1/3092]. Each station usually had a complementView from Ridge Cliff looking west to Golden Cap, Dorset

a rts buildings collections bulletinmartin papworthof four, a Lieutenant, a Petty Officer and two men [ADM 17/98].Drawings for a typical signal house survive [ADM 106/3125].It was a single-storey building with a front porch leading intothe Officer’s Dining Room and the adjoining Officer’s Bedroom.Opposite the porch was a Men’s Room containing the Officer’sPantry. There was a central chimney stack, with fireplaces in theofficer’s dining room and the men’s room. On the left side of thebuilding was a smaller area with an outside access door where thesignalling gear was stored.The alterations to the Golden Cap barrows were no doubt madeto use their bulk to screen the buildings from the south-westerlywinds. The exposed location of these outposts is described byLt. Gardner of Fairlight, a signal station near Hastings: ‘Fromour elevated situation I have often been in dread for the safety ofthe house, particularly in the SW gales I’m astonished that thehouse did not blow away’ [Hamilton and Laughton p.254].The holes in the tops of the barrows are likely to have been dugas foundations for the signal mast, which needed to be replacedfrom time to time [Clammer 2012 p.22]. A yard arm was attachedto the mast; by using ropes and pulleys, a red flag, a blue pennantand four canvas balls were arranged in various combinations alongthe yard and mast to convey messages. Generally the code for the6Excavation of Napoleonic pottery from between two barrows at Golden CapIn November 1814 the stations were closed and the men paid off.The Lieutenant was expected to sell the stores for the Admiralty,and then leave the station and the Navy [Clammer 2012 p.24].John Twisden gained a two-week extension [ADM 17/101] andthen found new employment.In 1815 Twisden was appointed clerk for the Great WesternCanal Company. The business established a navigable waterway from Taunton to Tiverton [Dodd pp.294-300]. In 1834 heregistered a patent for an improved canal lock, an idea which wasmodified and used on the canal by the engineer James Green. In1836 Twisden became superintendent, and by the 1840s the canalwas complete.At this time John Twisden won a court battle that enabled himto succeed to the title of 7th Baronet of Bradbourne. The 1851census describes him as head of the family, living at BradbourneHouse in Kent with three of his daughters, who were born whilehe was at Golden Cap. He died two years later at the age of 85.The disinherited orphan, who went to sea aged 12, ended his daysas a baronet in his ancestral home [Hatton and Hatton p.48].Martin Papworth, Archaeologist, South West regionDoghouse Hill excavationsignals was only known by the Lieutenant, who would instruct hismen to rig the mast with the appropriate message when necessary[Clammer 2010 p.58].Lt. Gardner describes the chief responsibilities of the commander. He was to ensure that both neighbouring stations wereconstantly observed so as to relay signals ‘by night and by day’to warn against threatened invasion by the French. In additionto the signal mechanism, a ‘blue light’ and a fire beacon were tobe kept in constant readiness for night signals [Hamilton andLaughton p.253]. Gardner acknowledged that the signal stationswere virtually useless in foggy conditions: ‘We had no relaxationof duty except in a thick fog which sometimes would take placefor nine or ten days together, during which time we had only towalk round the cliffs and along the seashore’ [Ibid].For eighteen years Lt. Twisden created a home at Golden Cap.He was expected to remain there at all times unless given leaveof absence [Clammer 2012 p.21]. It seems that Twisden, his wifeand children lived together with the crew in the small woodenstation.AcknowledgementsI wish to thank Maeve and Colin Roberts for generously providing information from their extensive Napoleonic signal stationresearch.BibliographyClammer, D., 2010, ‘The Sea Fencibles in Dorset’, Proceedings of the DorsetNatural History and Archaeological Society 131, pp.53-63.Clammer, D., 2012, ‘Naval Signal Stations on the Dorset Coast’, Proceedings ofthe Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society 133, pp.17-25.Dodd, D., 2006, ‘Boat Lifts of the Great Western Canal’, Journal of theRailways and Canals Historical Society 35, Part 4, no. 194, pp.294-300.Hamilton, Sir R. Vesy, and Laughton, J.Knox, 1906, Recollections of JamesAnthony Gardner, The Navy Record Society.Hatton, R.G. and Rev. C.H., 1945, ‘Notes on the Family of Twysden andTwisden’, Archaeologia Cantiana 58, pp. 47-48.Papworth, M., 2013, ‘Excavations at Thorncombe Beacon, Doghouse Hill andGolden Cap on the Golden Cap Estate, West Dorset’, Proceedings of the DorsetNatural History and Archaeological Society 134 (forthcoming)National Archives (NA)Admiralty Records (ADM)ADM 1/3167-3178 Lieutenant in-lettersADM 1/5052-55 Promiscuous CorrespondenceADM 9/6 1746 Service Record Lt. John TwisdenADM 12 IndexesADM 17/101 Accounts Golden Cup station

a rts buildings collections bulletin7OWLETTS: FROM KITCHEN BACK TO LIBRARYOwletts, the birthplaceand family home of thearchitect Sir Herbert Baker(1862-1946), reopened itsdoors to visitors in April2013 following the completion of a two-year majorbuilding and conservation project. This elegantRestoration-period house—built in 1683—wasdescribed by Baker as ‘asmall but typical homesteadof the seventeenth centurysquire-farmers of Kent not unworthy of preservation’ 1.In his day Baker was one of Britain’s most prominent architects, with major commissions in the Empire and at home, buttoday he is less well known, certainly in comparison with hiscontemporary and friend Sir Edwin Lutyens (1869-1944). Heis held in higher regard in South Africa, where he worked for20 years from 1892—initially as the protégé of Cecil Rhodes(1853-1902)—designing many of that nation’s governmentbuildings, as well as churches and private commissions.Closer to home he is more likely to be remembered for oneof two things: either his controversial work in remodelling theBank of England (1921-42), which entailed the destruction ofmuch of the fabric of Sir John Soane’s work, or the fracturing of his relationship with Lutyens during their work togetherdesigning the new seat of government in India at New Delhi(1913-29). A dispute arose over the gradient on the central axison Raisina Hill—initially agreed by both—which restrictedthe view of Lutyens’s Government House, and resulted in twodecades of ill-feeling. This is unfortunate, as Baker left a legacyof fine buildings and structures, including his work for theImperial War Graves Commission, most notably the hugecemetery at Tyne Cot (completed 1927) and the War MemorialCloister at Winchester College (1922-24).In addition to the minor matter of the complete replacementof the electrical, heating, security and fire systems, modernisation, structural repairs, and re-roofing, the refurbishment projectat Owletts afforded the opportunity to reinstate the Librarydesigned by Baker in the 1920s. He enlarged an existing room,adding a canted bay window, and installed fitted bookshelvesand elegant columns inside. In the 1980s the Trust reluctantlyagreed to the Library’s conversion into a kitchen to ensure thatfamily occupation of Owletts continued. By returning the spaceto its former use—and developing a new kitchen in adjacentservice areas—the greater part of the Owletts book collection,one of only two architect’s libraries in Trust ownership 2, hasbeen returned to its former home, and has thus allowed visitorsthe opportunity to gain a better appreciation of Baker and hisinterests.There are around 1400 books in total, and their primaryinterest rests in their association with Sir Herbert.They provide a visual guideto his interests: works onarchitecture nestle alongside titles on cricket (alifelong love), local history,and biographies of someleading figures of Empire.Literature is well represented; Dickens, a fellowresident of Kent and in likelihood personally knownto an earlier generation ofBakers, is prominent. French poetry was also a passion of thishighly cultivated reader; when he first visiting Owletts in 1942James Lees-Milne noted that Baker was reading such a title.3During the refurbishment the property was re-let. It is a happyconsequence that David Baker, great-grandson of Sir Herbert,has taken on the tenancy and will live in the house with hisfamily, continuing a family occupation dating back to 1794. Itwas always an objective that the reinstated Library should be aspace that could be enjoyed by both visitors and tenant. Thisdecision ensured that the tenants would have a light, airy andeminently liveable ground floor space from which they couldhave some of the best views of the gardens. Furthermore, itenables Owletts to have a genuine ‘lived in’ feel, rather than aTrust-created one.For this to work authentically it would have been counterproductive to have tried to recreate fully the taste and furnishings of Sir Herbert’s period of occupation. Instead, a mixedapproach has been taken. The distinctive mottled yellowdecorative scheme of the 1920s has been restored (informedby paint analysis), and so have the majority of the bookcases.Indigenous furnishings have been introduced from elsewhere inthe house, with a Victoria

Lord Fairhaven) was Clifford Barber, who joined the Cambridge Tapestry Company as a young man having trained at the Cambridge School of Art. He was the first locally-trained designer to join the drawing office, and he stayed until the workshop closed in 1943. His precise and