191 'LAMBOURN VALLEY'
by David Hewitt (Fl. 1902-12)

Lambourn is a little village in West Berkshire, which lies on the River Lambourn and is situated midway between Newbury and Swindon. The area is noted for its high downlands which stretch northwards towards Uffington's Castle and White Horse. The legends of the nearby Ridgeway across southern England date back to the late iron age. All can be seen today including the long barrow which estimated to be 5,400 years old.
Here in the late sun we are deep in the valley by the river. this cottage chimney smokes all year long for the daily cooking needs of the family. The golden roofing thatches would be locally grown reeds which to our eyes today, make these beautiful homes merge into their surroundings. Then it would all be taken for granted! It is almost guaranteed there will be a family of house-martins nesting in the eaves. But we must return to the picture which holds a certain mystery...........

How many white geese can you count? are their twenty one? But there are two more hiding in the rushes on the left.....wait, if you look carefully there are two 'ghosts' which seem to exist in the foreground!
It appears that the artist has a change of mind and painted over some of the geese for some reason best known to himself, but it may be for the balance of the composition itself.

Their exodus from the water is prompted by the motherly figure in the background carrying what could be some grain for their supper. It is late afternoon in this idyllic spot. The little girls are together for perhaps another hour before their own supper and getting ready to go to bed. Have they exhausted themselves playing boistrous games after helping in the kitchen?

From the scant foliage on the old apple trees it is almost certainly late Summer, The dry grass in front of the cottage probably confirms this. The boggy area where the geese are tramping will stay green all year long.

Could this place still exist today? Wouldn't it be wonderful to discover this exact spot for ourselves! Although so much of rural England has remained untouched for centuries, we all know that off the beaten track it would be like looking for a needle in a haystack. Perhaps someone might shed light on this place for the future?

The man in the river punt is pushing himself away from the bank carefully to avoid a mishap. Where is he going? Might he be setting off to catch some fish? Perhaps though the mission will be nothing so relaxing.