Recent Projects


Ecobus Watercolour Walk book Gilt table
Sophies Urn Lodge Pet cemetery Sculpture

Ecobus

After many years sterling service the old electric bus was getting to the end of its years. A new bus has been in service from the begining of May 2008 primarily funded by the Friends of Mount Edgcumbe.

The bus is more comfortable and has a better range than the old one, and has been well received by the public. The bus offers a free service from the Cremyll Ferry to the house and Barrow car park, especially for the disabled, but also any others with tired legs. Most of the drivers are volunteers and the Friends and Country Park are grateful for this invaluable effort

Sophies Urn

Another project sponsored by you is the restoration of Sophia’s Urn in the French Garden. It has stood in this position for two hundred years and was placed there by Richard the 2nd Earl of Mount Edgcumbe n memory of his wife. The Urn was in a poor state and was loose on the pedestal. The reason for this became clear when it was dismantled. The Urn was held in place by a broom handle that had rotted through. Apparently this was done by the gardeners who were here in the early seventies. Needless to say is now much safer, being held in place by a sta inless steel rod!

Purchase of William Payne watercolour

In late April 2007 your Committee received a request from the House for financial assistance towards the purchase of a watercolour entitled ‘Mount Egecumbe, Devon, 1807’ by William Payne (1760-1830) which was being put on the market by a dealer in London. The asking price was £1,750. After discussing the request your Committee unanimously agreed to fund the purchase of the painting and then present it to the Joint Committee on condition that it be permanently displayed in the House. The presentation was made at the Joint Committee’s Annual Inspection of the Park in July and the picture is now on display in the House.
Presentation by Gordon Crocker, chairman of FOMECP
New shelves in the lodge

Lodge

During the close season we were lucky to have Steve and Anne Creese refurbish the Lodge with a lick of paint and a new shelving system. With the help of some other members the books were all sorted and put in order. If you have any books to dispose of want to find some low cost reading material do not forget to contact the lodge. Open most weekends from 11.00 to 4.00 (volunteers willing !)

Or better still if you would like to volunteer and help out please get in touch with one of the comittee members.

Rame Walks

Following advice we applied for and received a grant from The Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty(AONB) Sustainable Development Fund and together with some of our own monies the wheels were put in motion to make a start. We were lucky to obtain the services of Bill Scolding, who had compiled the St.Just booklet, and we were soon in deep discussion as to suitable areas and walks that should be considered.

Having decided on 5 general areas Bill set out to investigate. The result is an excellent booklet that contains, not only 5 different walks in this lovely corner of Cornwall, but a host of information on the history, archaeology, flora, fauna and views to be found in the area. The booklet of 44 pages is printed in colour and contains literally hundreds of photographs of interest as well as a host of information. Even if you have no desire to partake of the walks the booklet provides a ‘must have’ guide to the local area.

Currently the booklet is being retailed through a commercial distributor and should be available in local shops and will also be available from the Lodge. Alternatively you can get a copy now by mail order (post and package free) by writing to The Social Secretary, FMECP, Mt.Edgcumbe House, Cremyll, PL10 1HZ including a cheque made payable to ‘The FMECP’ for £4.50p per copy.

Pets Cemetry

The pets cemetery is a quiet part of the gardens that was the traditional area that the Pets of the Edgcumbe family children were buried. In recent years there has been some vandalism to the headstones. The Friends have contributed funds to restore this area and hope that once again it can become a pleasant tranquil spot of the beaten track for quiet reflection

Gilt Table

We have recently made a donation of £2800 to the Park towards the refurbishment of the Gilt Table. This table, which is part of the Edgcumbe collection, has, for some years, languished in the attic of the house and is intended that, once refurbished, it will be permanently displayed in the Entrance Hall.


The work is being carried out by Anna Boegel who is a conservator of decorative surfaces and studied guilding in Germany. Traditional materials and methods are used. Firstly the surface of the table has to be thoroughly sanded to remove any loosebits and to open the wood grain for the glue layer. The glue, made from powdered extract of rabbit skin, is prepared and then the gesso, which consists of rabbit skin glue, whiting, a few drops of clove oil and some zine white (the latter two are to prevent mould growth) is also prepared. The surface of the table is then rubbed with methylated spirit to remove all traces of fat/sweat from handling. A layer of rabbit skin glue is applied and then five to seven layers of gesso. The gesso is then carved carefully in the parts where the decoration is not crisp enough after the application of the gesso. The whole table is then sanded with fine sandpaper to make the surface very smooth.

The next stage is the layer beneath the gold leaf called 'bole'. This is yellow and red clay substance. Three layers of the bole are applied , two of the yellow and one of the red . The table is then ready to be gilded. This can be done either by water gilding or oil gilding.

These techniques go back to the middle ages and even further. In principal the Egyptians were doing it more or less the same way.


Millenium Sculpture

The sculpture, which the Friends commissioned for the Jubilee Garden, was made by Kevin Deery, and is finally in place. It was formally unveiled by Robert, the Eighth Earl of Mt.Edgcumbe, in the presence of the Joint Committee, representatives of the media and members of the public, in July 2006. It should take its place in history, for as far as we can establish, it is the first bit of sculpture to be commissioned for the Park for over 200 years.

Pictured with the sculpture is Robert, the Eigth Earl of Mt.Edgcumbe (on left) and Friends chairman, Gordon Crocker.