Hampton Court Palace

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Visiting Hampton Court in Surrey was like walking through time. It has been continuously reconstructed throughout different periods in history, so if ‘Tudor’ is not your thing, don’t be put off by the exterior. As one of the most famous properties in the UK, I’m sure many of you have heard of it before, but it is certainly not overhyped! It delivers everything you could want in a historic house museum and more. They even have a tour with a lady dressed as Queen Elizabeth I, but it was not advertised well so make sure you ask! They do have parking, but I can imagine on a nice day, it would be full up, so get there early. After immediately entering the ticket office, I noticed an interesting conservation display (see photo below). 

A display encouraging visitors to touch one half of a
textile piece, in order to demonstrate the damage
caused by touching historical textiles.

In my opinion having an interactive display makes it much easier for visitors to understand the part conservation plays in preserving historic objects. I would like to know what the non-conservators amongst you think. Do you even want to see a conservation display? They do offer audio guides, but I have learnt that a good conversation with staff/volunteers can usually teach you more. Everyone inside was very friendly and proactively approached us to talk about the palace.  

Victorian reconstruction of a Tudor stained glass window.

This painting is of a palace guard, who was
supposedly the same size as the portrait.

The property is not jam packed with objects, but in empty rooms, museum management have definitely relied on their creativity. These Tyvek statues add an eerie atmosphere and they are perfectly life-sized. 

Tyvek is a material often used in conservation 
for packing and lining, but this is a great novel use of it!

After exploring for several hours, we finally gave in to hunger and were pleasantly surprised by the Tiltyard café. It had a vegan special (chilli), which was actually very impressive. Tis the way of the future!



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