Conservation Work Update

Work on the Ashdown House conservation project has been continuing apace. With the roof space accessible, several interesting things have been found - carpentry marks on the roof timbers, historical "rubbish" left by previous renovations and a new species of bat for Ashdown - the Serotine!

The original timbers behind the Bath stone window lintels have completely rotted away and will be replaced. Work on the staircase has revealed early examples of wallpaper that have been taken away for analysis and dating. All these fascinating discoveries will be interpreted for visitors to Ashdown when the house re-opens in April.

It's also time to give advance notice of a talk about Ashdown House and the Craven Family at the Shrivenham Heritage Centre on Tuesday 15th November at 7.30pm!

The William Dobson Portrait

Here at Ashdown House we are very proud to have in our collection a group portrait that was painted by William Dobson, Court painter to King Charles I, who was described by John Aubrey as "the most excellent painter that England hath yet bred." Tomorrow, 16th October, there will be a special piece about our Dobson painting on the Number One London Blog. Please do drop in to read about Prince Rupert, Colonel Murray and Colonel Russell and a painting that is packed full of symbols of loyalty to the Royalist cause.