Treasures of Highgate & Hampstead Heath

[bixaorellana]

This excursion begins at Highgate station, loops through part of Hampstead Heath, and finishes in Highgate. There is a reason for that, as you'll see.

The places I visited are either marked with a red dot or underlined in red ~



Perhaps because Highgate Underground station encompasses an abandoned railway station, exiting it is a little quirky.
Street level is reached in a sort of blank room, with a closed one-way door for an exit. Views from the windows presaged the kind of of hide-and-seek day I'd have.



Once on the Heath, I began looking for a way to a no-name secret garden I'd read about ~



Two young women I met on the sidewalk indicated a rough path into the woods and assured me I would quickly find the garden.
Eeny-meeny-miny decided that I should turn left. Wrong ~



On that path I met a lady walking, who told me to follow her on to the meadow. There she indicated the right way ~



Ahh ~ the secret garden actually has a name ~



The garden is totally hidden from view until past the sign and around some heavy growth. But then ~

[bixaorellana]

[tod2]

The closest I have been to Hampstead Heath is the Hill Garden and then the Spaniards Inn on Spaniards road. Both worth a visit. I did write about both some years ago now.
The Heath looks lonely and if I was on my own a bit scary. Bixa, you evidently felt quite safe.

[bixaorellana]

Oh Tod ~ thank you so much for reminding me of your wonderful coverage of the hill garden. I just looked and became very jealous that you got to see the wisteria in bloom. When I get to that part in this thread, I will link to your pictures so people can enjoy it in two seasons.

The only time I felt mildly nervous was on the woods path, as I flashed on various news stories. But I simultaneously remembered something I'd seen online: "If my body is ever found on a jogging path, know that I was killed elsewhere."

[kerouac2]

That looks like a really lovely garden. They are probably right to hide it. In my own area, I am often very happy that the rest of Paris does not know about certain hidden treasures.

[bixaorellana]

I know what you mean, Kerouac. Certain places should remain special and hard to find.

You're welcome, Huckle. I figured that would resonate with others besides me.

Leaving the garden and emerging from the woods, I set off for Kenwood House.

This looks empty, but there were many people around -- climbing the path toward Kenwood, playing with dogs, lunching on benches, etc. ~





This is the side entrance, where you're greeted by the delightful gift shop and the outbuildings converted into cafés ~



On my way to the main entrance, I walked around the entire house. Fancy as it is, this is the back ~



The house commands quite a view of the surrounding terrain, including a pond, woods, etc. ~





The tall windows are those of The Orangery, which we'll see inside of later ~



Continuing around ~







Finally, the front ~

[bixaorellana]

Before we go inside, here is some background on the house, which served as a seat for the aristocratic Murray and Guinness families:

The original house dates from the early 17th century when it was known as Caen Wood House. The orangery was added in about 1700. In 1754 it was bought by William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield. He commissioned Robert Adam, {a leader of the first phase of the classical revival in England and Scotland from around 1760 until his death}, to remodel it from 1764–1779. Adam added the library (one of his most famous interiors) to balance the orangery, and added the Ionic portico at the entrance. In 1793-6 George Saunders added two wings on the north side, and the offices and kitchen buildings and brewery (now the restaurant) to the side.
...
Lord Iveagh, a rich Anglo-Irish businessman and philanthropist (of the Guinness family), bought the house from the Mansfield family in 1925 and left it to the nation upon his death in 1927; it was opened to the public in 1928. ... The paintings are from Iveagh's collection. Part of the grounds were bought by the Kenwood Preservation Council in 1922, after there had been threats that it would be sold for building. source

A condition of the bequest was that admission to the house, with its astounding art collection – including a Vermeer, a Turner, two Van Dycks, walls full of Gainsboroughs, Reynolds and Romneys, and the greatest of all Rembrandt's self-portraits, would always remain free. extremely interesting source here

One enters into a beautifully proportioned room which I would have liked to photograph further, but was prevented by the kind, but over-eager docent who pounced before I even got my bearings. I shouldn't be ungracious, since apparently all the docents are volunteers and their enthusiasm is to be lauded. As it was, I was mostly able to wander unhindered through the rest of the house.

Stunning work on the ceiling ~







I pass the beautiful stairway and a center hall before arriving at some paintings. Treasures indeed!









Ferdinand Bol: Portrait of an Unknown Woman, c. 1644

[bixaorellana]

Painting on upper right: Edwin Henry Landseer, Hunting in the Olden Times

[lagatta]

In addition to Brits, lots of Dutch stuff! What a dreamy place.

[bixaorellana]

Isn't it though?!

My suggestion for anyone planning to visit would be to go directly to the house and begin viewing the collection. When fatigue sets in, adjourn to the extremely pleasant Stable Field section for something to drink or a meal. Parts of that area are historic and can also be viewed. As stated earlier, the gift shop is small but quite good. Once refreshed, stroll back to the house to begin looking again. One of the rooms I did not photograph is filled with tiny treasures -- miniature portraits, jeweled buckles, delicate brooches, etc.

We're now entering the Library:
The original paint scheme of the library, described by 18th-century visitors as "superior to anything of the kind in England", has been restored through excavating down to the original surfaces to take 400 tiny samples. source

The details!

[tod2]

Oh wow Bixa! What a place. I loved your introduction of leading us in your foot steps - those Agapanthas just ready to pop, and then the interior of Kenwood House. The paintings are so well photographed I could reach out and touch the ruff around the artist Ferdinand Bol's 'Portrait of an Unknown Woman'.
I am eagerly waiting to see more, more, more!

[lagatta]

Ferdinandbolstraat is a major street in Amsterdam: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferdinand_Bolstraat It intersects with Albertcuypstraat, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Cuyp_Market also named for a painter, where there is a famous market.

[bixaorellana]

So kind, Tod ~ thanks for the encouragement!

How perfect that Amsterdam acknowledges its Old Masters, LaGatta!

Moving now into another room:









I can vouch for how well that chair responds. After I took the picture above and moved in for a closeup, I noticed the arm was dusty.
Using the tail of my shirt, I went to dust it and the chair skittered across the floor.





I'm including him here because he's considered a major English portrait painter, but Romney's appeal completely escapes me.









I have to go out now, but there is still more to see. 

[lagatta]

Did you get to the famous Highgate cemetery? Or actually two cemeteries? And also a lovely wooded area.

[bixaorellana]

Stick around, LaGatta, and you will see where all I went and what all I did.

Passing from the previous room into a large hall and then to the Orangery beyond ~









In the picture above you see two young women in the second row. Here is their double portrait ~





The movie Belle, 2013, is a fictionalized account of the two women and others of the household.
If you wish to know more, here is the Wikipedia entry, plus a long, apparently well-researched account of Dido's life.







You can see in some of the pictures above that children are made to feel comfortable when visiting Kenwood House.
It would appear that children aren't the only ones to feel at home ~

[bixaorellana]

Countess Howe is not the only painted treasure in that room ~











This painting truly cemented my dislike of Romney ~







Moving on to this Chinese red room and the story behind the fireplace ornamentation. It seems that when Robert Adam was remodeling,
Lady Mansfield was adamant that her collection of Chinese tiles be incorporated. Adam was reluctant, as those tiles were already going out of fashion.
She prevailed, and this fireplace is the result ~





Some last views of dazzling paintings before we leave Kenwood House ~

[bixaorellana]

Finally leaving the splendors of 18th century elegance, I plunge off into the woods again, with no clear idea of how to reach my next objective ~





There are things to see along the way ~

I wound up on Spaniards Road, which meant at least I was on the right track, and asked a young woman with a child if she knew where Hill Garden was. She looked blank and I said I thought the full name was Hill Garden and Pergola. Her face lit up and she said, "Oh, you must mean the secret garden -- I love to take my daughter there!" She then kindly gave me very complete instructions on how to get to this truly hidden gem.

A little more woodsy hiking, and then ~





But how to get in? Please don't let it be closed!
Following the retaining wall shown at the right above, I came to some semi-hidden steps.
They took me up one level to this path and that sight of a reassuringly open doorway ~



These stairs are just inside the door ~



Should I take them, or ...
No, I'll go along this gallery on the ground floor first ~

[bixaorellana]

At the end of the gallery, I step off into the lushly planted ground level, with its lovely views up at the second level ~

















Even the weeds outside the garden's fence are lovely ~

[lagatta]

It seems incredible to find places like that in such a huge and longstanding city.

Yes, I read the story of Dido, but if the film showed here, I must have been elsewhere. Indeed there are the questions of race, slavery and also "bastardy", which has become as much of an unfortunate relic as slavery is, in many places.

[bixaorellana]

I so agree and it was a treat each time to realize the gifts of wildness to be found in such a major city.
LaGatta, I saw the movie and you didn't miss much. It's light and simplistic, though rather prettily done.

Ahhhhhh ~





Because of a wedding party in progress, entry to the pergola was blocked ~





It must be gorgeous when the wisteria is blooming, although I confess I am rather enamored of these bare weathered cupolas.
To enjoy a sight of the wisteria in this garden in bloom, visit Tod's "Finding the little gardens of London" thread and go to reply #54.

[kerouac2]

This was a delightful and totally well documented report with something for everybody. As for me, I really liked the views of the gardens and flowers, while the various portraits and the details of the decor were far less fascinating to me (probably because I have seen so much of this stuff already). Nevertheless, I probably would have taken quite a few of the same pictures, although it is unlikely that I would have bothered with the plaques, because I really do not care about such things. This is not at all a criticism, because I am in total admiration of your attention to detail and how you provide links to always more information about the things you saw. Probably only a minority of people really want to know all that much about a lot of the stuff, but that minority certainly holds you in high esteem, because I think that all of us have spent hours tracking down more information about certain things about which we wanted to learn more. So thank you very much for doing just about all of the work for them.

Since I have pretty much stopped editing my pictures except for simply not posting most of the really bad ones, I do appreciate how you always strive for perfection and put me to shame, except for the fact that I am pretty shameless and have made one or two enemies in the past (not at Anyport, I hope) when disregarding 'helpful hints' for improving my photos that well-meaning people have made.

I am just worried that you will no longer be able to return to the region of London since you have covered it so thoroughly already.

[tod2]

Bixa - thank you so much for showing us the garden & pergola walk of The Hill. As you approached it from a completely different way to the one I took, the photographs are also so different. You saw things I did not, like the spiral iron staircase.
I am sorry the Pergola walk was blocked off but seeing it through your lens brought back memories of firstly my late mother who walked down it with me, and then when in the month of May I re-visited it with my husband.
I was reading the history of the whole project started by Lord Leverhulme in 1905 after he bought the house and adjoining land.
If the name Lever triggers anything in your mind, it is because of the name Lever Brothers who made Sunlight soap famous. I especially took my mom there as she was a secretary at Lever Brothers here in South Africa, her very first job.

www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/hampstead-heath/heritage/Pages/the-pergola.aspx

[bixaorellana]

Hey ~ both of you are putting paid to this thread, which is not nearly over yet! ()

Kerouac, I don't feel I've even scratched the surface of London yet. I do hope that my reports will prompt other tourists to learn what I've learned, which is that even the most touted areas, such as Greenwich, hold much more than a day's visit will uncover.

Tod, I didn't realize you'd first visited the Hill garden with your mother -- how lovely!
Do please stick around, as in thread time, I'm not even out of the garden. More to show of it & there are a couple more places still to see.

[bixaorellana]

Continuing on ~





This is what's on the other side of the pergola walk. From reading Tod's thread, I learned that it's the grounds of a hospital ~

















Ah ~ it appears that the end is nigh up ahead. As long as this walk is, it's so contemplatively delightful that I'm sorry for it to end.



I've come to the top of the stairs I encountered when I entered Hill Garden ~



Down I go an out onto the woodsy path, en route to my next destinations ~



~~~ Stick around, gun-jumpers -- there is more to see! ~~~

[bixaorellana]

Once out on a road again, I got on a bus. The driver told me he would tell me where to get off for Highgate Cemetery. A woman next to me said that she knew where to get off and would tell me. I think I should have stuck with the bus driver, as the woman routed me across Waterlow Park, which I loped through at top speed trying to reach the cemetery before closing time. It is in two parts and, as I arrived panting at the road between the two, one gate was already locked.
A lady was waiting for people to leave the other side and graciously allowed me to enter for five minutes ~

Old and new tombstones seem jumbled in together ~







Oh, the frustration of not being able to wander up and down those paths!









It would appear that's all I'll get to see of Highgate.

Well, now I can go back and take in the park properly. This house is next to the entrance to Waterlow.
I don't know that the Tudor chimneys are authentic, but the garden just glows in the afternoon sun ~

[bixaorellana]

From the sunny garden above, you can probably tell that the green shade of the park was welcome ~



But what's this? Look -- all along the hedge and fence dividing the park and cemetery, there are wonderful views into the graveyard ~

















But enough of that. Let's veer back into the land of the living ~

[bixaorellana]

Love these back-lit Crocosmia!





As I near the exit, I see there is something else to explore ~













It's not easy to leave this park. On my path out, this lovely rock garden beckons ~





Goodbye Waterlow Park and thanks for being a welcome surprise addition to today's outing ~



And goodbye to Hampstead Heath and Highgate.
Until next time.

[tod2]

Bixa it was lovely to see parts of Highgate Cemetery from all angles - especially through the park fence! What luck. You must have felt cheated that time was up when you arrived, but elated somewhat when you got some photos to show us and at least say that you have been there - I have never thought of an adventure into Highgate, but you have me interested to visit there someday.

I was delighted with the raised garden beds - just like mine except in wood.
Another delight was the lovely red Crocosmia which shoot up all over my garden too! Was that lavender growing in Goldilocks' Garden?

[bjd]

It looks like lavender, Tod.

So you didn't get to visit Karl Marx's tomb in Highgate Cemetery, Bixa? I remember seeing it in a movie many years ago.

[lagatta]

It isn't just Karl; several other family and household members are also there. I recently read the book on Eleanor, Marx's youngest and most brilliant daughter, and her sad fate at the hands of the cad of cads...