Summer Is A Comin'

It's great to see the boats go back in the harbour at this time of year. The sky put on a rainbow show in happiness at the thought.

Forced Temporary Closure

The museum had to close for a morning this week as the construction gang re laid the tarmac outside the museum.
Whist having to close is obviously bad news - having tarmac out side is great news!! Mud and dust have been causing us huge problems since the flood so it will be fabulous to enjoy smooth underfoot action for a change.

Auction Disappointment

Yesterday the museum failed to secure a painting of Cecil Williamson which had come up for auction in Plymouth.
The painting was by the late Robert Lenkiewicz and was undertaken shortly before Cecil died.
Graham had particularly wanted the portrait for the museum as he had taken Lenkiewicz to meet Williamson in his nursing home and witnessed the artist at work on this particular portrait. The museum took the bidding up to £4000 but this was not enough to secure the picture which finally sold for £4200.
Whilst it is disappointing not to have secured this important portrait, the museum has limited funds and must spend its money carefully.
I wonder who the successful bidder was?

New Sign

The weather in Boscastle can be a little extreme to say the least so our signs take a real beating. The lovely Mike, sign writer to the stars (well - us anyway) has been busy replacing our old sign with a sparkly new one. Here he is proudly displaying his work.

Glass cane donation

Our friends Martin and Belinda have donated a beautiful, very long, glass walking stick.
These items were often placed between a bed and fireplace and were said to absorb the evil spirits that caused diseases, especially ague (malaria). They should carefully be wiped clean each morning. Breaking your glass stick will surely attract misfortune. (From information provided by the Glass Manufacturers Federation.)
Let's hope that Martin & Belinda don't go down with the ague now they have given their stick to the museum!

Bye Bye Bridge

And so last Tuesday (a grey & foggy day in keeping with the mood of the villagers) we bid farewell to a Boscastle landmark - the old bridge outside the museum. I'm not sure how long it's been there but I believe it's more than a couple of centuries. It has withstood many of the floods that have hit Boscastle and that is one of the reasons why it has had to be replaced. During the August 2004 flood, fourteen cars became lodged underneath it, causing a huge backlog of water & debris which exacerbated the destructive effect of the flood waters outside the museum.

As sad as it is to see it go it really had to be changed. Unfortunately the new bridge is a bit of a shocker. We hope it will look more attractive when it is finally tarmacked & the railings are in situ. Graham took these photos for your perusal.