Smallhythe Place … the half-timbered house built in the late 15th or early 16th centuries … which Ellen Terry, the Victorian actress bought in 1899 and used until her death in 1928 …
Smallhythe Place - front (obvious - sorry!)
... it is now a National Trust property housing many of her items … books (3,000 of them), theatre collections, memorabilia …
View of bedroom - showing brace holding
together corner of room
The house was probably built after a major fire in the harbour and village as it was in 1514 … being originally called 'Port House' …
 |
| Another view of the bedroom - again highlighting the brace |
 |
| Some of the 3,000 books in the library, others stored away; the contain lots of marginalia |
Back in the day … it was the main house and land in the area … which today it still is, as there are now only a few houses left in what is known as Smallhythe.
The home is of a costly construct, with an overhanging upper storey … which over the years has been maintained – as you'll see in the bedroom pics above … it has been 'tied together' with iron braces … denoting the hand of a skilled carpenter/ blacksmith …
Ellen Terry's button box
Now I'm just giving you some pics ...
This is a money box made by the local Rye Pottery ... established in the 17th C ...
Staffordshire Pottery established c 1720s
A Staffordshire pottery watch stand ... the watch is put into the 'cup' at night ... so when reaching out the watch is easily available to see the time ...
The beetle (genus Sternocera) only lives 3 – 4 weeks, while only beetles, which when they've died naturally, are collected for their wings.
 |
There was an exhibit of beetle wings, with some display pieces for visitors to admire in a more close-up situation ...
Her banqueting dress used in
the performances of Hamlet
Ellen Terry, the English actress of the late 19th and 20th centuries, refused to wear anything heavy or constricting for her performances – which Alice Comyns Carr, designer, complied with in her designs and the fabrics selected …
Her make-up box
Ellen's original make-up box is on display ...
Ellen Terry
A sculpture of Ellen Terry by Margaret Winser ...
Margaret Winser was asked on Ellen Terry's death to make a mould, in order that death masks could be made ...
 |
| Showing the danger of living near the local 'river' - that was a busy waterway in the 1500s |
... over the centuries these relatively small streams have had interesting histories ...
A view of the back of Smallhythe Place ... as the marshes became silted up - they were turned into agricultural fields ...
... then barns etc were added to accommodate the change of the estate's use ...
These are just a few of the pictures I took as we went round ... but they give an idea of the house and its contents ...
My post from 2016 - gives more information on the Beetle-wing dress ...
Hilary Melton-Butcher
Positive Letters Inspirational Stories
21 comments:
What an interesting life she led - I read your previous post, too. How were the beetle wings attached? Stitching them would have been quite tricky, I imagine.
Thanks for this post, so interesting, and I have never heard of the beetle before. The dress is truly remarkable. I have just gone through your other blogs that I have missed so hopefully I have caught up now. That is what rainy days are for, we have not had many of them this summer!! I hope all is well, cheers Diane
Thanks for the tour, Hilary. The beetle wing dress looks amazing! Always facinating to visit historic homes. I love doing that as well. Cheers!
Hari Om
Another historical delight from you, Hilary - this was a most interesting. Having been aware of the beetlewing dress, I don't recall ever having seen it, so thank you for that! YAM xx
That's great they have preserved so much and people are able to tour the place.
@ Janice - thanks ... it's been a fascinating process over the last 9 years - but such is the blogging life isn't it. They did sew them on - believe it or not ... we had an Indian seamstress give us a talk on the intricacies of their work ... unbelievable - especially bearing in mind it was often done in candlelight ...
@ Diane - oh how good to see you ... I'm way behind and I don't have a large garden to look after, or the houses and your husband!! I hope the ribs are much improved ... well at least you've had some rainy days - it was bucketing here today ...
@ Debbie - it was fun to visit the museum and look around the property ... and then finding the From Ships to Sheep booklet - it's so interesting. I can believe you enjoy visiting places ...
@ Yam - thank you ... nor had I really realised what the beetlewing dress was about - but it's been fascinating ... so many different subjects ...
@ Alex - yes ... they've looked after the old home/house so well over the years ... and as you say it's great it's preserved for the future ...
Cheers to the five of you - thank you so much for visiting ... Hilary
What a feast it must have been to visit that gorgeous house. I was impressed with the beetle wing dress. That most have been costly but its gorgeous as is the other one. I found the watch stand intriguing as well. How handy.
;-) Just trying to imagine myself in the beetle wing dress. ;-)))
Fascinating post, by the way.
What a fascinating place to visit.
The property is now very large and quite complex - it covers 60+ acres with houses, theatre, barns, orchards, nuttery, gardens and marshland. Is there any information about whether the land was as complex in the late 15th when the house was first built!
Well done for keeping the estate still intact!
@ Marja - it was a very enjoyable visit ... I've no idea how much those type of dresses cost in the 1800s - put down to the theatre management. It's an area I know little about - but the Beetlewing dress has always interested me.
@ Sean - to think of being covered with beetle-wings is a little enticing ... a lot of mending would be required afterwards! Smallhythe has certainly offered me much as far as posts are concerned ...
@ Liz - thanks ... we did enjoy our visit and day out ...
@ Hels - I think my previous post gave a lot of the history you ask about - equally if you want more Wiki offers it ...
Cheers to the four of you and thanks for visiting - Hilary
A very interesting post, Hilary. I am sure it was an incredibly rewarding visit. The beetle wing dress intrigues me, as it does many others. Somewhere in the deep recesses of my aging mind I seem to have known of such garb before, but it is all pretty vague. What would one say to a lady wearing such a garment - come fly with me, perhaps? Or, “want to wing it tonight?” Maybe, “Let’s beetle off together.” Better stop now! Many hugs - David
That looks like a very interesting place to visit. A beautiful house even without the Ellen Terry connection.
No way. I can't believe that dress is made out of beetle wings. That is so crazy. And I love all the old stuff in the house, especially that little watch holder. Happy Friday.
OMG. I had no idea beetle wing clothing actually came from beetle wings. Wild. Very pretty though.
WOW - I want to go on a tour immediately. That place looks wonderful to explore. You truly do cool stuff. Thanks for sharing.
@ David - I was so glad we went ... we'd been planning it for a while - but last year the dress was at the V&A ... then it came down here (possibly for the last time) - so we made a decision to go.
It's interesting isn't it ... in the days as flying was taking off, the car was also rushing forward - hence their ability to get down to Smallhythe ... a journey that's not easy today ... as it's 'in the sticks' (countryside). Thanks for your 'quotes' ... and comments ...
@ Anabel - yes - there's lots to see ... and I could have spent ages there ... but we gave it its dues ... I should have wandered the gardens a bit more ... but time wasn't on our side - also the weather wasn't that kind ... summer ending.
@ Melody - great to see you ... the dress is amazing ... especially as they've repaired it recently. I loved the night watch holder ... and the pottery connections ... they'd have had to break the money box, if it had been used ... no other way in ...
@ Sandra - yes ... thankfully no beetles hurt in the making of the dress ... as you say an OMG look ...
@ Joanne - it's not far from here ... so wasn't a stretch for us - just a very happy day out. There's so many other places - in this country to see ... we're lucky ...
Thanks so much for your visits ... it's great to see you all and to read your thoughts on the outing - cheers Hilary
I so enjoyed that walk back in history. How we change--money box, the make-up box that wouldn't fit in a pocket of my purse, 3000 books! (I'm jealous).
Fascinating post and lovely photos. Thank you so much for this tour.
Love the beetle-wing dress and its history, although I would never want to wear it!
Thanks so much for this delightful tour, Hilary. I'm sorry to be so late in arriving. I am desperately trying to catch up. The artifacts on display and the grounds are amazing. I'm glad this place is being maintained.
Post a Comment