monkton’s drystone wall

May
2008
12

posted by Lily on quilts

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Following last week’s hiccup, Monkton was obliged to spend today tending to the drystone wall that surrounds the immediate castle gardens.

strip piecing the wall
A relic from the early Elizabethan days of the castle, when the family’s flock were fond of foraging among m’Lady’s herbaceous borders, the wall is still maintained by Monkton’s Lord, who sees it as a symbol of his family’s longevity and right to be there.

gorgeous fabric

But the recent April rain has led to some subsidence and Monkton needs to replace some of the smaller connecting stones. Snatching up his cloth cap and a flagon of ale, he heads off to the old quarry with Philip, the gardening lad.  Philip, who doesn’t inspire much confidence with his begruding irreverence, could not possibly be trusted to cut the stone, but he can certainly lend his youthful strength to trundling the laden barrow home!

finished

By late afternoon, Monkton has finished his careful and age-old work. As he packs his tools, the wall picks up the setting sun’s cooling fingers of light and Monkton pauses to admire the rich colours emerging from the traditional golds of the Cotswold stone.  His grandad, who maintained this very wall for his lifetime of service to the castle, would be satisfied with Monkton’s efforts.

interlocking pieces

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