DOWN HOUSE, BROMLEY, KENT: Notes on the Trellis Attached to the Walls of Down House Shown in Photographs and Watercolours Dating from Charles Darwin Residency

Author(s): Richard Lea

The following notes were written in response to a request for advice on the trellis from English Heritage, Major Projects. As part of the current programme of repair and restoration to both house and garden, it is intended that the trellis is restored, and both creepers and ivy are grown to recreate the appearance of the house towards the end of Darwin's lifetime. No physical evidence for the trellis was recorded during the recent works to the house. An examination of pictorial evidence shows that Darwin's trellis was not uniform in its construction and that, in his later years, it was the product of several stages of development. During his forty years at Down, Darwin maintained the trellis and creepers throughout several phases of alterations to the house. Note: this report is concerned with the structure of the trellis, not with the identification of plant species. The author has no knowledge of botany.

Report Number:
125/1997
Series:
Other
Pages:
42
Keywords:
Modern

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