Stephen and I had a wonderful afternoon at Finchcocks, although it wasn't without its mishaps! Richard Burnett, the owner of the museum, is an accomplished musician and an entertaining speaker, and he puts on a three-section mini concert in the course of the afternoon, with intervals to allow the tea rooms to do business and for people to look at the collection and try some of the instruments upstairs, and also to enjoy the gardens.
The mishap came out in the gardens, where there is a fish pond with a rather nice wrought iron dome over it and I was just removing the extension tubes from my camera after taking some macro shots of lichens on the walled garden brickwork, when I droped my 21mm extension tube in the pond! Plop! I could see it but I couldn't reach it, so Stephen went out there in one of the intervals with a borrowed wire coat hanger, and went fishing for it. Now I've got to dry it out and hope it still works!
The music was interesting and entertaining, and the old instruments are beautiful to behold. There are several in the collection which have the most intricate marquetry on them.
Stephen particularly likes seeing how things work, and we didn't see enough for him and want to go back another day and do it all again. Oh, and we saw an intricate wooden music stand upstairs which I have photographed for Stephen to use as inspiration, as he wants to make me a wooden music stand of my own.
When a volunteer was required to hand pump the chamber organ, Stephen put his hand up, and followed in the tradition of his grandfather, who used to pump his local church organ. He did a good job, too!
We finished the afternoon back at the fish pond, where I was careful to do any further lens changing a safe distance from the water, and I took a whole roll of slides of the reflections in the pond. I'm hoping that there will be some camera club material among them.
Finchcocks have a website at http://www.finchcocks.co.uk
Helen
Click here for pictures of Finchcocks.
Last Revised: 11th August, 2001.