Pretty Wood
Pretty Wood is a woodland area of the Castle Howard estate in North Yorkshire, in England. It contains two historic structures.
History
[edit | edit source]The wood lies south-east of the main house at Castle Howard. It is a steeply sloped area, and was a popular location for the Howard family to ride out to during the 18th and 19th centuries.[1] It contains numerous oak trees, including the large King Oak.[2]
The wood contains two follies, probably designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor and completed by 1727: a pyramid and the Four Faces structure. Kerry Downes describes the two as "utterly pointless", with "no reason for being there and leav[ing] all your questions unanswered".[3] Nikolaus Pevsner was more complimentary, describing the Four Faces as a "pretty bauble".[4] John Dixon Hunt notes that they "recall us to cultural origins in ancient Rome and Renaissance Italy, yet they do so on as English a site as could be imagined".[3]
Pyramid
[edit | edit source]The grade I listed pyramid is built of limestone, about 8 metres (26 ft) high, and has a square plinth with a rusticated base and a moulded frieze. The rusticated pyramid stands on the base.[4][5] It was restored in 2000.[6] From it, The Pyramid, a slightly later work, is visible.[1]
Four Faces
[edit | edit source]
The grade I listed statue is built of limestone and about 6 metres (20 ft) high. It has a square plinth with four pulvinated courses, and a rusticated base with raised panels and a moulded cornice. On this is a tapering column, and a bulbous four-cornered sculpture depicting faces, above which is a decorated apex.[4][7] It was restored between 1997 and 2003.[6]
See also
[edit | edit source]References
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