Looking up.
Just a few chimneys
We don’t observe what is around us enough , we are all. guilty of it including me because we are so busy rushing around ….but anyone who knows me , know that I’m partial to a nice chimney on top of old buildings and anything that makes me think ” that’s interesting I must find out more”
The moon , the sky , chimneys , a roof or even what’s on top of a roof . We are all guilty of not seeing what’s above us .
Chimneys have been an important part of buildings for centuries – particularly in colder climates where there is a need to retain heat but remove smoke, and prevent downdrafts. In British architecture, they were first found in castles , and then in manor houses.
It was in manor houses that the first of what today would be called chimney pots appeared. And in the Tudor period it became fashionable to have very ornate brick chimneys and stacks. While much simpler versions of chimney pots became common on ordinary homes around the Elizabethan period.
A chimney is the entire structure that carries off the smoke from a fire. Rather oddly, to modern eyes, some early chimneys were made from wood – until the practice was outlawed by early fire prevention laws.
chimneys were also a status symbol , the taller and more ornate the chimney the richer you were and higher up the smoke was in the air the less pollution.
Look up and see the Four Seasons statues
The Four Seasons which is on top of the Victorian arcade in Union street Ryde which has inside the Donald McGill museum among other small shops ., on the side is an old sign for Hughes & Mullins .Many members of Royal family were photographed here.
This is Regina House which was built in 1865. and once home and business of Jabez Hughes Royal photographer.
Later Gustav Mullins became a partner and their names are on the side still and the beautiful four seasons statues still n the top..Take a look up when next in Union Street.
St .Helens Duver Church
The church is a great monument to the area and has been here since the 15 th century and before ..It stands just off National trust land perched where the sea meets the land .It serves as a marker for those at sea.
Only the rower was left in the 17th century and was bricked up and pasted white asa seamark for nNavy ships in 1719.
If you look up you can see the beautiful emblem on the top.
Moving on to Bembridge 