Just pleasantly floundering around.....

Norwich's Thatches In Tudor times a ban on thatched roofing was brought in because of the extra fire risk a thatch brings. The legacy of this is that there are very few thatched buildings in Norwich - despite there being so many old buildings. I originally read that there were only five thatched buildings, however, I found a sixth! A) Britons Arms - the only building on Elm Hill to survive the fire of 1507 has had many uses: a house of surgeons, place of weaving and saddle making. It was also - more unusually - a Beguinages which was a female community that was dedicated to religious worship without taking formal vows. These were common in the Netherlands but this was the only one known of in England. B) Pykerell's House - House of Thomas Pykerell who died in 1545 and was mayor of Norwich three times. This house has a great hall. C) Hampshire Hog Yard - behind the Arts' Centre. It was a pub for many years. D) Barking Dicky - . It was once a pub called the Light H...

I have always loved Norwich Cathedral as it is stunning and wonderfully atmospheric. I also love it because it is loaded with a hotchpotch of history which is not surprising, as its foundations were laid in 1096. This post is the 'fruit' of about two years of reading everything I could lay my hands on about the cathedral. Everything included here, you can go and see for yourself.  1) The Elizabethan grave of Thomas Gooding Thomas was a mason of the cathedral. He paid a fair amount of money to be buried upright because he believed this would give him an advantage come judgement day. At the base of his memorial is a memento mori: a poignantly death-focused inscription, typical of its time. 'All you that do this pass bye Remember death for you must dye As you are now even so was I And as I am so shall you be Thomas Gooding here do staye Wayting for God's judgement day' If you look at the skeleton, you will see there is poor knowledge of anatomy. 2) T...