Ancient Places

 

Here is a photo I lined up to use way back in 2009 before the blog went on the back burner. This photo looks and is a simple one, it's strength lies more in what it is, and where it is. This is a view across the Wiltshire countryside to the town of Salisbury, denoted by the Medieval cathedral which has always marked out the town. The view is from the ramparts of Old Sarum hill fort—and that's where it gets doubly interesting. Old Sarum was a fortified hilltop from ancient times, and was castellated by the Normans. Little remains of it, and what there is was reworked in modern times to suggest some sort of order to tourists passing through, The cesspits are recognisable, as are the foundations of the chamber in which Henry II slept—the last king recorded as ever spending a night at Old Sarum. I visited on my road trip westward from London in the early winter of 2006, my first overseas trip, and can remember even now the sharp chill of the day. From the sun angle, you can see it's late in the day, about the last stop before the coach headed back east. The soft, almost milky quality to the light seen here was pretty much what it looked like on the day, The image has been straightened up, contrast and colour balanced, and sharpened a touch. Fuji FinePix S5600, automatic. Image by Mike.

Fangorn, By Any Other Name

Click image to view at 800 pixels wide

There is something symmetrical in the randomness of nature, paradoxical as that sounds, and the wild grizzling of the moss clinging to this tree creates an amazing texture. The photograph was a simple frame and shoot, in afternoon light, nothing clever in the technique, it's the subject matter that counts here. And the sense of antiquity it brings: it was a very old place and something of that infused the moment. This tree stands on the outer edge of the earthworks of Old Sarum Hillfort, above the town of Salisbury, in Wiltshire, UK, a place which has been fortified since the Bronze Age and was constantly held by one power or another into the Middle Ages. There are vestiges of Roman stonework, and the last king to spend a night there was Henry II, if I remember correctly. I found myself wondering how old this tree is, and what history has unfolded in sight of its gnarled limbs and roots... December 2006, Fuji FinePix S5600, automatic. Image by Mike.