Sometimes you can be left with more questions than answers when exploring historical/archaeological remains, trying to understand their original form and context can too often be obscured by time and its ravages. Take this piece of decorative stonework on Highcliffe Castle (a fancy house rather than a real castle), beautifully executed, though sadly damaged, possibly during the devastating fire of 1968, if not surely during the subsequent 25 years of dereliction and neglect; for whatever reason, now damaged we can only speculate on the head of this decorative dragon woven into a tree of life. We do have some information though on the stoneworks possible provenance, we know that some of the carved stonework of the castle was pillaged and reused medieval stonework from the Norman Benedictine Abbey of St Peter at Jumieges and from the Grande Maison des Andelys, both in France, and we know the context of the buildings construction by 1st Baron Stuart de Rothesay in the 1830's; though that doesn't help us necessarily know what the dragons head looked like. Neither can I find no pre-dereliction images of this archway. So, we're just left to wonder and use our imagination as to the dragon heads appearance; until that is I discover a relevant photo, of which I'm sure one exists......somewhere. Anyway, for now I'll just enjoy the opportunity to explore French medieval stonework on my doorstep.
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