Euston cemetery burials reinterred in Surrey
At the end of June, more than 14,000 burials that had been excavated from St James’s Gardens in Euston in advance of HS2 (see CA 398) were reburied at Brookwood Cemetery in Surrey. Prayers were led by The Rev. Neil Hopkins, Vicar of Brookwood, in the presence of some descendants of those being reinterred.
To mark their reburial, a memorial monument was erected in the new landscaped garden. Built in two pieces, it is meant to reflect the changes made to the burial ground when Euston Station was extended in the late 19th century, and when a new road was built between the gardens and the station. It also reflects the style of the ledgers and gravestones found in the cemetery during the HS2 project.
300-year-old tapestry rehung at Blenheim Palace
The Schellenberg tapestry, which was commissioned by the 1st Duke of Marlborough between 1706 and 1710, has been fully restored and rehung in the First State Room in Blenheim Palace. This tapestry was woven by Judocus de Vos, and is the last of the ‘The Victories’ series, which is made up of ten tapestries each depicting a pivotal battle in the War of the Spanish Succession. This one depicts the Battle of Schellenberg, which took place on 2 July 1704.
The conservation of the tapestry, by Emma Telford, took more than a year to complete and consisted of removing the old lining and fastenings, then ‘washing’ it in a large bath, before carefully rebuilding any silk or wool threads that had degraded over time. The tapestry was then relined before being rehung.
Dryburgh Abbey reopens to visitors
Dryburgh Abbey, under the care of Historic Environment Scotland, has fully reopened to the public, including all internal areas. It was closed last year to carry out necessary repair work to its masonry, which has been impacted by the effects of climate change.
The abbey was established by Premonstratensians from Northumberland in 1150, and was one of six Scottish houses of this order. Although it was decommissioned during the Reformation in 1560, the abbey was brought back to life in the 1700s when it was purchased by David Erskine, 11th Earl of Buchan and chief founder of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. As a close friend of Erskine, Sir Walter Scott, the novelist, was buried in the north transept of the abbey.
