Heritage Open Day: Hull

[pandop]

On Saturday we decided to take advantage of Mum still being based in the East Riding, and visit some of the places in Hull that were open for the Heritage Open Days.

Seeing as going home by train generally means going through Hull, I met Mum in Hull - and we planned to concentrate on visiting city centre places that did not need booking, so it didn't matter how long we took to get to places.

Firstly, we visited the Chapel of Trinity House School - which is the only bit of the school still on the site next to Prince's Dock. The chapel was quite nice, but at the back there is an enormous Oceanus statue, that used to be on the almshouses:



From there we (well I, the stairs were too steep for Mum) went to the former Neptune Inn/Customs House that seems now to be the staffroom and office for Boots (possibly one of the poshest staffrooms in the country). We had no idea that this was here, never having looked up (I am bad at looking up in Hull, as I tend to be on foot/in a car - I at least see more of Leeds from upstairs on a double decker bus), but this is the facade:



and the ceiling/wall panelling:



After meeting up with a friend of mine for lunch, we then went to Ye Old White Harte to see the plotting parlour, where the decision to close the gates to the King, thus starting the Civil War, may or may not have been taken. Either way, the panelling in both upstairs rooms was beautiful.

Plotting parlour:

And the other upstairs room had a marvellous fireplace:

Finally, we made our way over to Maister House in the Old Town, where there is a fantastic Georgian Staircase (I went up, Mum didn't)

Looking up:

looking across on the first floor:

There was a queue to get up to the top balcony, as H&S means only 6 people are allowed up there at once, but it was worth it

The cupola:

Some of the moulding:

and Georgian portraits on the balcony:

All in all it was a very good day, and it was particularly nice to see so much of Hull's history, as it is often lost amongst the post-war concrete (and even the bombing history, as the second most bombed place is also neglected)