Hello all,
Thought you might be interested in our discovery following an item, 'Burning Issues' in the latest SPAB magazine. As we have been renovating the farmhouse (Monmouthshire) we have noticed several peculiar charred marks on both beams and floors which we had assumed were accidental, perhaps a result of candles left burning too long, too close to the beams. However, the magazine article explained that they were more likely to have been made deliberately as a kind of protection against fire - perhaps where the term 'fighting fire with fire' derives?
The article also said that charring marks were also made retrospectively near where a really serious fire had occurred and we have found a clear instance of where this has happened, though the 'insurance' marks are, in this case, in the room adjacent to the charred cruck beam, and on the floor rather than on the beam itself. There are also some marks cut into the cruck frame which the article says are a kind of secondary insurance and which apparently aim to invoke the madonna's protection. In our case, they are cross hatching or 'M's' cut into the cruck beam shared by two bedrooms but the marks are in the bedroom directly behind where the serious charring has occurred. We also have a little burn on another beam in our bedroom tie beam. This is in the slightly later, Tudor part of the building and there is no obvious sign of a previous fire here (so, clearly this one worked!)
We already knew that we had some apotropaic (evil averting) cuts in the huge stone fireplace in what was the cruck hall. I have attached some photos of the pool of burns on the floor, the 'm' hatching behind the charred cruck and the site of the fire on the cruck. I'm sorry that the quality is poor but they were taken with my phone and sent to my desktop. Separately I will attach one of the successful tie beam burn, one of the stone marks and one of the stone fireplace where they are found. (3 pics the limit on each post).
Hope these are of interest and you can see what I've been talking about as I'm not too sure it's clear from the pics themselves. SPAB are going to put something in the letters page of the next issue for anyone who subscribes. Reproduction may be better there.
Thought you might be interested in our discovery following an item, 'Burning Issues' in the latest SPAB magazine. As we have been renovating the farmhouse (Monmouthshire) we have noticed several peculiar charred marks on both beams and floors which we had assumed were accidental, perhaps a result of candles left burning too long, too close to the beams. However, the magazine article explained that they were more likely to have been made deliberately as a kind of protection against fire - perhaps where the term 'fighting fire with fire' derives?
The article also said that charring marks were also made retrospectively near where a really serious fire had occurred and we have found a clear instance of where this has happened, though the 'insurance' marks are, in this case, in the room adjacent to the charred cruck beam, and on the floor rather than on the beam itself. There are also some marks cut into the cruck frame which the article says are a kind of secondary insurance and which apparently aim to invoke the madonna's protection. In our case, they are cross hatching or 'M's' cut into the cruck beam shared by two bedrooms but the marks are in the bedroom directly behind where the serious charring has occurred. We also have a little burn on another beam in our bedroom tie beam. This is in the slightly later, Tudor part of the building and there is no obvious sign of a previous fire here (so, clearly this one worked!)
We already knew that we had some apotropaic (evil averting) cuts in the huge stone fireplace in what was the cruck hall. I have attached some photos of the pool of burns on the floor, the 'm' hatching behind the charred cruck and the site of the fire on the cruck. I'm sorry that the quality is poor but they were taken with my phone and sent to my desktop. Separately I will attach one of the successful tie beam burn, one of the stone marks and one of the stone fireplace where they are found. (3 pics the limit on each post).
Hope these are of interest and you can see what I've been talking about as I'm not too sure it's clear from the pics themselves. SPAB are going to put something in the letters page of the next issue for anyone who subscribes. Reproduction may be better there.
(how exciting)