A quick visit last night to a local point of interest, hoping for a decent sunset, but alas, nothing special happening. Played around with a few bracketed exposure settings and settled on this image as the most pleasing from my air time.


West Wycombe Hill has been continuously inhabited for centuries. The earliest settlement survives in the form of an Iron Age ditch and rampart contour camp on Church Hill, dating from the 4th or 5th Century BC. A Roman settlement later occupied the Hill and the Saxons established a place named Hæferingdune (Hill of Hæfer's people in Old English). A church was erected by St Birnius, who later became the bishop of the West Saxons in AD 635. A Norman watch tower is also said to have been built on top of the hill. The population is believed to have been greatly reduced by the Black Death in the 1340s and by the mid-18th century the hilltop village had all but disappeared.

St Lawrence’s Church

Medieval in origin, the Church received a substantial re-design in the 18th century by the Dashwood family and the work was completed by the mid 1760s. The tower was raised to make it more visible from afar, and it was crowned with the wooden golden ball that was reputed to be a meeting place for the Hellfire Club. It could seat up to 10 people, and was described by the author John Wilkes as “the best globe tavern I was ever in”.

The interior of the Church is equally magnificent. The design of the nave is said to have been derived from Robert Wood’s prints of the ancient Temple of the Sun in Palmyra. It has five arched windows of timber on each side, and is lined with engaged Corinthian columns under a continuous entablature. The painted ceiling is by Giovanni Borgnis, and there is spectacular Rococo plasterwork, on the ceiling, frieze and walls.

Nice info and capture!

Cool. What is that strange hexagonal contraption?

Depp Posted at 10-7 04:54
Cool. What is that strange hexagonal contraption?

That strange hexagonal contraption is known as Dashwood's Mausoleum ...

The Dashwood Mausoleum was built in 1765 and is constructed of Portland stone and flint.

The Mausoleum was built on the site of an Iron Age Hill Fort on West Wycombe Hill in Buckinghamshire houses urns containing the ashes of the Dashwood family.

In the 18th Century, (one of the member of the Hell Fire Club ) Paul Whitehead left his good friend Sir Francis Dashwood his heart. After his funeral which included canons being shot outside the mausoleum, his heart was placed in an urn in the Mausoleum. The heart used to be passed around tour groups in 18th Century, until an Australian soldier stole the heart, it has been missing ever since. The ghost of Paul Whitehead has been seen in many spots in the village, including the caves where the originally empty urn is now kept.

Splendid capture.    That's a beautiful church and I really like the mausoleum in the background.  Quite the history you provided.

Have a great day and a wonderful weekend R3SKT.  

Well done - thank you

Great shot. Particularly with the unusual ball on the top. What's the hexagonal structure in the background, I wonder?

R3SKT Posted at 10-7 04:57
That strange hexagonal contraption is known as Dashwood's Mausoleum ...

The Dashwood Mausoleum was built in 1765 and is constructed of Portland stone and flint.

Funny, isn't the ghost now in Australia?
Thanks for the info. It looks a bit like a folly.

Great Picture and history.  Thanks so much!

Great Shot    

Blériot53 Posted at 10-7 07:22
Great shot. Particularly with the unusual ball on the top. What's the hexagonal structure in the background, I wonder?

That strange hexagonal contraption is known as Dashwood's Mausoleum ...

The Dashwood Mausoleum was built in 1765 and is constructed of Portland stone and flint.

The Mausoleum was built on the site of an Iron Age Hill Fort on West Wycombe Hill in Buckinghamshire houses urns containing the ashes of the Dashwood family.

In the 18th Century, (one of the member of the Hell Fire Club ) Paul Whitehead left his good friend Sir Francis Dashwood his heart. After his funeral which included canons being shot outside the mausoleum, his heart was placed in an urn in the Mausoleum. The heart used to be passed around tour groups in 18th Century, until an Australian soldier stole the heart, it has been missing ever since. The ghost of Paul Whitehead has been seen in many spots in the village, including the caves where the originally empty urn is now kept.

R3SKT Posted at 10-8 01:33
That strange hexagonal contraption is known as Dashwood's Mausoleum ...

The Dashwood Mausoleum was built in 1765 and is constructed of Portland stone and flint.

Wow. A macabre tale
Thanks for the background detail

Hi R3SKT, here is that edited pic of your image we talked about. I hope you like it.  Take care!

Nice capture with very crisp imagery!

Wonderfully captured

That's so cool!!