Berit & Chris's weblog

Explosive Dresser

After negotiating a favourable price for the dresser, we brought it home on the roof of the mini only to discover some interesting print on the back of it (see picture). Apparently, the dresser was constructed almost entirely out of old explosives boxes from the Glaswegian Nobel’s Explosives Company.

Only after researching this on the net, did it become clear to us that Alfred Nobel, Swedish founder of the Nobel Peace Price and inventor of dynamite, founded this company in 1873. Nobel himself had visited Scotland some years prior searching for sites appropriate for the manufacture of explosives. In the end, he set up his company at Andeer sandhills, south of Stevenson. In his will, Nobel assigned a considerable fortune to fund the Nobel prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature and Peace. The income from the Nobel Foundation was to be distributed to those who has most helped mankind. The Nobel prizes were first awarded in 1901. Therefore, should we ever be short of cash, we'll flog the dresser in Sweden! Please follow these links, for more info on Alfred Nobel (1833-1896) and industrial accidents (some of which relate to the Nobel's Explosives Company) in 19th century Scotland.

Chipping Norton, The Cotswolds

Today, we left a cold and wet Bristol behind and headed for the Cotswolds to view a lovely antique dresser in the town of Chipping Norton. It has been trying to snow in Bristol for more than a week, but no more than a few flakes have ever reached the ground and we have instead been stuck with a bitter Northerly wind. Heading North this all seemed to change. Hills and countryside were covered in a thin layer of snow, making every village we drove through (the navigation system forced us to take a scenic route...) stunningly attractive. Approaching Chipping Norton, we were greeted by the tall chimney of Bliss Tweed Mill, built in the late 19th century, which made me somewhat anxious in light of Chris’ latest obsession with chimneys.

Past and Present

On Friday, we finally got around to picking up from our solicitor the last of the documentation for the house, which included original hand-written and stamped Indentures from 1874 (see pic) to the present day. They explain the circumstances of ownership, land prices and issues of access and dwelling rights administered in the last 130 years.

A new Land Registration Act came into force in October 2003, which meant that the Land Registry no longer issues and retains land certificates, change certificates and title deeds. Instead, the definitive record of title will be the electronic register at the Land Registry office, and buyers will only receive a so-called Title Information Document. However, anyone who delivered a document originally or is now the registered owner of the property in question can apply for the return of any original documents, often land certificates, deeds and/or other historical records of their home. From 2008, the Land Registry reserves the right to destroy documents still in their possession. For more information, please visit: www.landreg.gov.uk