Some months ago, in fact towards the end of last year I was contacted by a lady who was jointly producing a book on Georgian garden buildings. She had alighted on an image of mine of the Triumphal Arch at Parlington, being one of many I had posted on Flickr. Initially I was sceptical, having had numerous requests for photographs, but after contact by email, it seemed that a genuine request was indeed the case. I was slightly puzzled by the picture in question on the request as I thought it pretty average, and by no means my best shot of the arch. However, after a sending a suitably sized copy for print purposes, I was assured that the image was fine and would go forward into the review process, and if selected it would appear in the book, for my trouble I would receive a copy FOC once published. I was delighted to learn that it was to be included, and felt that my efforts to bring to the fore the largely unnoticed Gascoigne treasures on the Parlington Estate was having some effect.
Well yesterday, unannounced Mr Postie, delivered to me a copy of the newly published book, and I have to say I was pleased to receive it, running to some 128 pages there is much to learn of the many architectural gems from the Georgian Period included within it. Obviously each structure mentioned receives only a brief attention, and it covers all manner of interesting buildings and landscape objects; arches, beastly buildings, bridges and cascades, castles and forts, churches and chapels, columns, druidiana, gates and gateways, grottoes, hermitages and root houses, mausolea and monuments, obelisks and pyramids, orangeries and conservatories, and much more. On page 18, and a full page spread at that, was my photograph of the Triumphal Arch, along with a short description, “The theatrically thin arch at Parlington, Yorkshire (1781- 83 Thomas Leverton)…”
There we have it, my picture was chosen because it demonstrates quite clearly the slenderness of the structure!
The book titled, “Georgian Garden Buildings” is co-authored by Sarah Rutherford and Jonathan Lovie, available from Shire Books ISBN 978-0-74781-101-5 and only £8.99 and even less on Amazon here, for pre-order, as of the date of this post.
Yes I do have a few points, with regard to the arch. No mention is made of Sir Thomas Gascoigne the 8th Baronet at Parlington who commissioned the arch, only the architect Thomas Leverton gets a mention. The date is missing from the reference to the inscription on the face of the arch, 1783, or as it is shown in Roman Numerals MDCCLXXXIII, which is somewhat crucial being the date of the treaty of Paris which brought the warring parties to a peaceful conclusion. I, along with other contributors got a small mention in the acknowledgements preceding the Contents page, but, sadly, no mention is made of the Parlington History site, nor even the Triumphal Arch section.
About the Authors
Sarah Rutherford was formerly head of English Heritage Parks and Gardens Register, and Jonathan Lovie* a historian who has worked for English Heritage, and is the Conservation Officer for the Garden History Society.
*An unusual name, and I am reminded of a friendly construction plant manager with the same name, from many decades ago at Tarmac Construction.