Wednesday 26 March 2008

Cowardly Lion

One of things I love about Daily Photo Blogging is that you take a photo of something you've seen dozens of times, go to post it and realise you know nothing about it. A quick look on the Internet soon fills in the blanks, and you've learnt something new about the place you call home.

This coat of arms is above the porch of John Dower House, in Crescent Place. The building is now the headquarters of the government body The Countryside Commission, but the coat of arms belongs to one of Britain's former Kings. The imposing building was built in 1820 and was opened as Fisher's Boarding House, but it was soon renamed Clarence Hotel. The renaming was due to a stay in 1827 by Adelaide, Duchess of Clarence. She was the wife of the future King William IV. In 1858 the County police force set up its headquarters in the former hotel and stayed until 1970. The Countryside Commission moved into the building in 1974 and has been there since.

One of the websites I looked at refereed to the Lion as being like the one from the Wizard of Oz! I agree!


Something I can't answer is - Who was/is John Dower?.... Something else to discover...

14 comments:

Susan said...

I love the face of this lion!!

Janet said...

What is that lion thinking, I wonder?

FĂ©nix - Bostonscapes said...

Oh, boy, that's a mean unicorn (judging by the lion's expression...)

:D

Lori said...

I'm afraid I can't help you with the John Dower mystery. But I think the lion is great! He definitely looks like the cowardly lion from the movie. What a good shot! We are learning a lot from your posts.

brian stout said...

very nice photos, marley. coincidentally i have the 'remnants' of a coat of arms as part of my post today as well. great minds think alike =)

Anonymous said...

Great post. I don't think we look up enough. I found this

http://www.rsc.org/delivery/_ArticleLinking/DisplayArticleForFree.cfm?doi=CT9119900599&JournalCode=CT

A John Dower who was a partner with a couple of others at the Star Chemical works. Maybe your John Dower?

Anonymous said...

Heraldry is a whole other subject well represented by this photo. Nice photography.

Abraham Lincoln in Brookville, Ohio.

Ioanna said...

Poor lion! He looks so frightened! Or should I say desperate? What is happening to him???

Chuck Pefley said...

Research is amazingly easy with our WWW access. Lovely photo today and interesting post.

MJ said...

Hi Marley.. what a cute lion..
wonder why they made it with such a horrified face - as if he saw a ghost! :)

Bergson said...

a lion which is afraid, it is in a fable of Jean de La Fontaine

Neva said...

A very interesting post...I love how we are forced to learn some things!! Love the lion.

Ming the Merciless said...

Your Highness, why the sad face. ;-)

CrazyCow said...

The lion's face is hilarious. Wonder why they chose something so funny for the coat of arms?

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