Visitors to us aren't always looking for expensive antiques. They are mainly looking for yesteryear collectables and older solid furniture to replace laminated chipboard. Dealers respond to customers demands; Victorian and Edwardian pine chests and furniture are bought, restored and sold. If an item is sold we start looking for similar items and a trend is set.

OF EMBARGOES UPON CORN, AND OF THE POOR

In inland countries, remote from the sea, and whose rivers are small, running from the country, and not to it, as is the case of Switzerland, great distress may arise from a course of bad harvests, if public granaries are not provided and kept well stored. Anciently, too, before navigation was so general, ships so plenty, and commercial transactions so well established, even maritimecountries might be occasionally distressed by bad crops. But such is now the facility of communication between those countries, that an unrestrained commerce can scarce ever fail of procuring a sufficiency for any of them. If indeed any government is so imprudent as to lay its hands on imported corn, forbid its exportation, or compel its sale at limited prices, there the people may suffer some famine from merchants avoiding their ports. But wherever commerce is known to be always free, and the merchant absolute master of his commodity, as in Holland, there will always be a reasonable supply.

by Gilbert R. Redgrave from Cassell's Technical Educator. (Written in the late 19th century.)
COPING BRICKS - MOULDED BRICKS - GAUGED BRICKS - TILES - ROOFING AND DRAIN TILES.

by Gilbert R. Redgrave from Cassell's Technical Educator. (Written in the late 19th century.)

The manufacture of flooring tiles has, we think, made greater progress during the present century than any other branch of the ceramic art; and this industry as now practised in Staffordshire, presents many features of great interest, and differs in many respects from the manufacture of the coarser wares we have noticed in our previous chapters. The old fashioned 9 inch or 12 inch tiles made in wooden moulds in the same way as bricks are made, have now been almost entirely superseded by the thin machine made tile, which has scarcely one point in common with its clumsy prototype.

The first powered flight took place 100 years ago. The advances in materials, engines and design in that time have been phenomenal.

Aircraft from before the First World War don't bear much resemblance to the aircraft we travel in today and they are well worth seeing if you have any interest in how design has changed. Aircraft design has affected design of many everyday items such as the streamlined look of 50's and 60's household appliances and cars.

Aircraft design advanced exceptionally fast in the first 15 years due to the First World War. Our pictures show a Bristol Box Kite from before that war and a triplane from that War.

To find out more about celebrations of 100 years of flight visit the 100 years of flight home page.

To see more of our early aircraft a visit to the Shuttleworth Trust at Old Warden in Bedfordshire is a very good day out and this year there are more flying days than ever before.

In ironwork the manifestation of a true constructive principle is beyond all things desirable. Iron, being a strong material, should not be formed into heavy masses unless immense weight has to be sustained or very great strength is required. If we form lamps, candelabra, and such works of iron, it is obvious that the portions of metal employed in their construction may be thin, as the material is of great strength. Were we to form such works of wood, then a greatly increased thickness of material would be necessary, in order that the same strength be secured, as wood is not nearly so strong as iron.

Having considered metal work in its more costly branches, we come to the consideration of hardware; and I am glad that we have reached that part of our subject which deals with inexpensive materials, for they are those which must be generally employed, while works formed of the precious metals can be used only by comparatively few persons. The object of art is the giving of pleasure. If as an artist I give pleasure, I do to an extent fulfil my mission; but I do so perfectly only when I give the greatest amount of the most refined pleasure by my art that it is possible for me to give. If by producing works which can be procured by many I give pleasure, it is well that I do so; but if the many fail to derive pleasure from my works, then I must address myself to the few, and be content with my lesser mission. Education appears to be necessary to the appreciation of all art; the artist then, is a man who appeals to the educated.

Paul Atterbury is coming to Letchworth Garden City

On 26th April at 7:30 p.m. the Letchworth Garden City Society is promoting a public lecture by Paul Atterbury, known to many as one of the experts on BBC TV’s Antiques Roadshow.