The Antiquarian Magazine & Bibliographer; Vol. 4, July-Dec 1884Various
History
The Antiquarian Magazine & Bibliographer; Vol. 4, July-Dec 1884
Various
Archaeology -- Periodicals; Great Britain -- Antiquities -- Periodicals
After luncheon some of the party went to Alnwick Abbey, in the valley of
the Alne, about a mile off, where some interesting tombs have lately
been discovered, and the plan of some monastic buildings laid bare;
others drove to Hulne Abbey to see the grounds and park; and the return
journey to Newcastle was made by special train.
In the evening papers were read in the architectural and archæological
sections as follows: Mr. J. Bain on “The Ancient Percys of Scotland;”
the Rev. J. Hirst on “The Ancient Mining Operations in Britain;” Dr.
Hodgkin, “A Translation of Hübner’s Eine Römische Annexion”; and Canon
Raine, of Durham, read a paper on “The Ecclesiology and Architecture,
Secular and Religious, of Northumberland,” in which he condemned the
mischievous practice of what was termed “restoration.” The so-called
restoration of a church now too often meant the destruction of all that
gave it its value as an ancient piece of architecture. This paper was
followed by a discussion, in which Messrs. Longstaffe, Walford, and
others took part, and in which Sir Edmund Beckett’s rebuilding of the
west front of St. Albans Abbey was condemned in strong terms.
Thursday was devoted to a visit to Lindisfarne and Holy Island, a place
associated, as every reader of “Marmion” knows, with the history of St.
Cuthbert. Arriving at Lindisfarne, the party made their way to the ruins
of the abbey, which stand in a meadow, not far from the water’s edge, a
cliff rising between it and the sea and protecting it on the south. The
Dean of Chester (Dr. Howson), in obedience to a very general request,
gave a short biographical account of St. Aidan and a sketch of his
apostolic labours in the propagation of the Gospel throughout the north.
After the Norman Conquest, he said, Lindisfarne was again colonised by
the faithful, and a Benedictine abbey founded in it, which lasted till
the Reformation, when it was granted by the King to the Earl of Dunbar,
and the work of its spoliation began; the lead being first stripped from
its roof, it soon fell into decay, and is now roofless. As a ruin it is
carefully preserved from further decay and injury by its present owner,
Sir William Crossman. A tribute having been paid by the Rev. Mr. Lowe to
the character of St. Cuthbert, the details of the existing fabric were
explained _seriatim_ by Mr. J. T. Micklethwait. Mr. Hodgson, a local
antiquary, also commented briefly on the views of the last speaker.
After luncheon, the parish church was visited; this adjoins the west
front of the Abbey, and has some Norman and early English features,
which were duly explained by the Vicar. The company afterwards walked to
the castle at the eastern extremity of the island, and from this they
had good views of Bamborough Castle and the range of the Cheviot Hills.
Shortly before sunset the visitors returned to Newcastle.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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