Strange But True

Strange But True

  • Inexpressibles

    The name given to the tight trousers worn by some Regency gentlemen, such as the notorious Beau Brummell and his ‘dandy’ followers,  as they showed off their leg muscles.

  • What did Victoria do first

    after her coronation in 1837?  Have a parliamentary meeting?  Have tea with all the royal dignitaries?  No – she gave her dog, Dash, a bath.

     

  • Now that’s what we call a cake!

    Victoria and Albert’s wedding cake was a colossal 9 feet wide and weighed 300 pounds.

     

  • Victorian ladies’ knickers had no middle

    Once they got all those big dresses on, they couldn’t reach their knickers to pull them down, so they could stand over a potty to wee with these on instead.

     

  • Would you wee in your dining room?

    Victorian gentlemen did! Some dining rooms (like ours) had a special cupboard to house a chamber pot so all the gentlemen could go for a wee without leaving the table (once the ladies had left the room, of course!).

     

  • The last ducking stool to be used in England

    (in 1809) can still be seen not far from us in the Priory Church, Leominster, Herefordshire. It’s huge.

     

Handy Hints

Handy Hints

  • Keeping your kettle clean

    To prevent teakettles coating with lime – put the shell of an oyster in the teakettle and the lime will adhere to it, instead of coating the sides. 1852

    As with all our historical handy hints, this is a real tip from a Victorian book. We cannot say that it’ll work and it’s up to you if you want to try!

     

  • To take mildew out of linen

    Take soap and rub it well, then scrape on some fine chalk, rub that also into the linen, lay it on the grass, as it dries, wet it a little, it will come out at twice doing. 1852

    As with all our historical handy hints, this is a real tip from a Victorian book. We cannot say that it’ll work and it’s up to you if you want to try!

     

  • Antidote against mice

    Gather wild mint, put it where you wish to keep them out, and they will not trouble you. 1852

     

    As with all our historical handy hints, this is a real tip from a Victorian book. We cannot say that it’ll work and it’s up to you if you want to try!

     

  • To remove grease from books

    Lay upon the spoon a little magnesium or powdered chalk, and under it the same; set on it a warm flat iron, and as soon as the grease is melted, it will be all absorbed, and leave the paper clean. 1852

     

    As with all our historical handy hints, this is a real tip from a Victorian book. We cannot say that it’ll work and it’s up to you if you want to try!

     

  • An insect trap

    Scoop out the inside of a turnip, scallop the edges, and place it downward in the earth. The insects will pass into it as a place of retreat through the holes, and the cucumbers, squashes, melons etc., may soon be clear of them.  1852

     

    As with all our historical handy hints, this is a real tip from a Victorian book. We cannot say that it’ll work and it’s up to you if you want to try!

     

  • To clean gilt buckles, chains &c.

    Dip a soft brush in water, rub a little soap on it, and brush the article for a minute or two, then wash it clean, wipe it, and place it near the fire till dry, then brush it with burnt bread finely powdered. 1823

     

    As with all our historical handy hints, this is a real tip from a Victorian book. We cannot say that it’ll work and it’s up to you if you want to try!

     

Christmas good wishes and a huge thank you

Christmas good wishes and a huge thank you

Victorian Christmas cardWell, we’ve taken our tree down, after a fun five week run of Victorian Christmas with school children – phew!

We just wanted to say a huge thank you to everyone who supports us here at the museum. Thank you to all the wonderful accommodation providers throughout Powys, Herefordshire, Shropshire and beyond who send people our way, or come in to see us themselves; thank you to all the hard-working (and increasingly rare) Tourist Information Centre staff; thank you to all the other attractions in the area and to all you lovely people who pop in, bring your friends or help spread the word about us. We are so terribly grateful – we would not be here without you.

We hope you have all had a good year, despite the economic difficulties. It certainly is a challenge for us all isn’t it?!  Despite this, 2011 has been a fantastic year for The Judge’s Lodging in what has been going on.   Three recent happenings here that we have not had a chance to tell everyone are:

We’ve just got another award!  The inaugural National Hudson’s Heritage Awards has rated us one of top two best historic buildings in the country for education, family and community work!  More here

The January 2012 edition of fashionable architectural and design publication The World of Interiors has a wonderful 12-page article on us, with absolutely stunning photograph by Alex Ramsay. More here

…and if you missed the story in the Daily Mail recently, we discovered we have a bit of Downton Abbey link!  More here

2012 is already shaping up to be an exciting year, with the opening in the Spring of our new Presteigne interactive exhibition, chill-out space and activities. This will be followed hotly by a new temporary exihibion area, launching with a sporting theme for the Olympics, followed by an Autumn closer look at Presteigne people through the objects that they leave.  Also running in the Summer will be our own tribute to the genius of Charles Dickens – we thinkthat by now there can’t be many people left who have not been made aware that it is his 200th birthday coming up and we want to celebrate by using our collections to highllight the themes of his greatest works.  There will be events and activities around all of these things and we promise we’ll keep you posted.

Other highlights from our year, if you want to catch up have been:

Getting the Sandford Awards for Heritage Education for the second time and going down to the Houses of Parliament to receive it in February.  More here

The incredible sight of 100 Welsh Guards arriving at the building for the Freedom of Powys Ceremony in May.

The Installation of the High Sherriff of Powys –always a fabulous event and we get to have Judges here again too!

A few TV appearances on S4C and BBC

Chilling Edgar Allan Poe nights  – so scary that some people fainted!

Rather an eventful year!

Kind regards

Gaby Rivers, Curator

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