Jo’s Monday walk : Bede’s World

It was last Summer when I first came upon Bede’s Heritage Trail, quite by accident, in the sleepy hamlet of Whitburn, on the north east coast.   A 12 mile walk, it links the church of St. Paul’s in Jarrow with St. Peter’s, down the coast at Wearmouth.  I had inadvertently arrived, right in the middle.

Benedict Biscop, a Northumbrian nobleman, had travelled to Rome 6 times and was inspired by the Christian life he found there.  In 674 he approached King Ecgrifth of Northumbria and was given a large estate on which to found the monastery of St. Peter’s, in Wearmouth.  It’s twin, St. Paul’s, was begun 8 years later, further north at Jarrow.  They were among the first stone buildings in Anglo-Saxon Northumbria, and St. Paul’s contains the oldest church dedication stone in England.  Part of the Anglo-Saxon monastery survives today as the chancel of St. Paul’s.  A good place to start, I think.

The Venerable Bede was educated in the monastery from the age of seven, and became the most important European scholar of his era. (born 673- died 735)  The founder of medieval historical writing, his works give a unique insight into life in the monastery.  The two buildings were regarded by Bede as ‘one monastery in two places’ and ‘bound together by the one spirit of peace and harmony’.    Monks would have traveled between them on foot, or by boat, using the small tributary of the River Don, which links to the Tyne.

I had scribbled details of the first part of the Heritage Trail on a slip of paper, intending to follow the route of the monks for at least a little way before returning to explore the museum dedicated to Bede.  As so often happens, a signpost created confusion.  Perhaps I should have ignored the cyclist.  In any event, Bede wouldn’t have had to tackle flyovers and underpasses.  And certainly not graffiti!

It was something of a relief to return to Jarrow Bridge, spanning the Don, alongside of St. Paul’s.  Gyrwe, the Anglo-Saxon name for Jarrow, means ‘place of the marsh dwellers’.  Arrows pointed me in the direction of Bede’s World, and from there I couldn’t go wrong.  A wealth of information, pleasingly displayed, I found the museum imaginative and entertaining.

Benedict Biscop was keen to build in the ‘Roman manner’ and spared no expense, importing skilled masons and glaziers from abroad, to accomplish this.  Over 1,000 fragments of coloured glass were discovered during excavation of the site of the monastery.  The Jarrow Figure was reconstructed using glass found under a collapsed wall.

The community of monks was very industrious during Bede’s lifetime.  One of their most notable achievements was the Codex Amiatinus, a complete Bible in a single volume.  It weighed over 34 kilograms (75 lbs), being made with 2060 pages of vellum – calf skins washed in a bath of lime, stretched on a frame and treated with pumice.

Bede Museum shares the grounds with Jarrow Hall, and the lovely old building provides light refreshments in its cafeteria. (and cake, naturally!)  With the sun shining brightly, it was time to take a stroll through the Anglo-Saxon farm.  Curly-coated pigs, Dexter bullocks, goats, ducks and chickens share the 11 acre site with reproduction thatched farm buildings.

A gentle green path, fringed with primroses and blossom, leads to a mound topped by a cross, and a viewing point over the industrial River Tyne.

It’s a nice green space in an urban setting.  I hope you enjoyed it with me.  I’ll take you to St. Peter’s another time.  Meanwhile, this leaflet contains details of the whole trail, and here is a link to Bede Museum.

Great to have so many of you sharing walks with me again this week.  I really appreciate it.  Please find time to visit each other.  I know it’s a struggle sometimes but it really is worthwhile.  Join me any time here on Jo’s Monday walk.

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Starting with a fabulous hike in Japan, with Celia.  The vistas are wonderful :

Spring Hiking at South Takao

Much flatter, but still full of interest, join Anabel in Holland :

A walk round Utrecht

Coffee and Leonard Cohen – I find both irresistible.  And where there’s Jackie, there’s always food!

Turkish Coffee

Where would you expect to find an English garden?  In Munich, of course!  Thanks, Lady Lee :

A morning in English garden

Standing stones are always fascinating, aren’t they?  Suzanne has found some most unusual ones :

A Mystical Destination – AVEBURY

Drake finds me an idyllic piece of Greenland to share this week :

Covenant with nature

And Gunta has immense Redwoods and Trilliums!

Hike to Trillium Falls

A city I’m to visit soon, but just in passing.  I wish I could take this tour with Meg :

Warsaw street art

Emma is tireless when it comes to the Welsh coastal footpath.  Her love for it shows in her paintings :

Pennard Cliffs & Three Cliffs Bay

Something I’d really love to do.  I wonder if Susan would like company?

Walking the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco

From one iconic sight to another!  Hit the heights with Rosemay :

Hong Kong – A Walk Down The Peak (The Morning Trail)

That’s it for this week!  Distinctly cool here, but in England there’s another Bank Holiday coming up.  I’ll be taking you to some wide, open spaces next Monday.  Take care till then!

116 comments

  1. Pingback: Railway Garden | Heaven's Sunshine

  5. Great walk Jo. You find such fascinating places to go to with so much history. Exactly the sort of walks that we love to do, bit of exercise and a bit of learning. What could be better?

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  8. How incredible this must be to walk amongst and allow your mind and memory to try and capture even the smallest essence of such deep history! This is really wondrous, Jo. The beautiful greenery and evidence of nature’s beauty in the present, against the backdrop of so long ago–striking! I would LOVE this walk, and that’s certain!

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    1. Looking back at man’s resourcefulness, it does make you wonder how we got in our current mess, Debbie. Did we get a bit too clever and careless along the way? I do enjoy discovering places like this. The Romans had such an impact on this area. Thanks for your enthusiasm. 🙂 🙂

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  10. Such a lovely post Jo. A spring walk with the flowers and history too. There are some delightful places ‘oop’ north aren’t there? A bit late for me to have another Northumberland holiday now with you going south. Oh, well, one day maybe I shall walk in YOUR footsteps. I shall be saying to the OH “Jo came here and Jo went there…”

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    1. And OH will be saying ‘bloody Jo!’ 🙂 🙂 We set off to do this last Thursday and got stuck in a traffic accident tailback before we even got to Sunderland. Aborted effort and a freezing cold gallop around Wearmouth. It doesn’t always go smoothly, does it? But far rather then, than on an airport run. 🙂 And Saturday was a much better day. I enjoyed it. Hard to believe I’d never been though it’s only half hour or so away. (not many people head TO Jarrow) James was there on a school trip once but it’s all been revamped since then.

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      1. Mick might be glad to have the rest from all your gallivanting once you are residents in Tavira. He can relax on the beach and send you off on the bus to explore 😀 Although I am sure you will be dragging him with you on the promise of cake.

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  11. Now this is some serious history. lucky you Jo, just think of the ancient footsteps you walked in. I find the bit about vellum fascinating, working with modern leather is hard enough. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a cross with a figure carved on it either. Thanks for your hard work on this post my lovely, I’ve learnt a lot x:-)x

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  12. What a wonderful walk, I love old places like that and those colourful panel are gorgeous 🙂

    Incidentally, I’ve changed the header on my blog as per your suggestion. It’s one of my own photos, I really wanted one with a bench on but none of the ones I have seem suitable. Let me know what you think 🙂

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  13. What an amazing walk. Thanks for taking us along. That 75 lb bible isn’t a thing you’d want to carry along to church. I found the cutaway of the monastery fascinating. It looks pretty austere, but I suppose that was part of the point. The setting looks so peaceful, too!

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  14. Wow, the last one so breathtaking. 🙂

    I adore ruins, so much history and so many stories. 🙂

    But the best of all is your photos monday after monday
    with so many details – so fascinating and inspiring. 🙂

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    1. Thanks, Drake. 🙂 🙂 I sometimes wonder what I did with myself before the blog took over my world. 🙂 I’ve always liked rambling but I also enjoy the research afterward, and putting the story together. Happily, a few other people seem to like it too.

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  16. Pingback: Streets with inspiring content | Le Drake Noir

  17. Oh Jo Portugal walks are wonderful but I’ll miss all the bits of old England you’ve shown over the years, and always more to find. The colours in the codex are astonishing (is it the original?) and so is your account of the materials used. I love the stone ruins too. 30° hugs – not stopping the kids from riding their bikes like maniacs up one of the few hills in Warsaw, constructed in a playground.

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    1. Yes it’s original Meg. Incredible isn’t it? I’ll still be coming back in the Summer so I expect I might find a few more gems. You never know. Are you dizzy hon? So much fun to share xx

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  19. Pingback: Americans in Bavaria ~ A Spring Stroll by the Danube River – Tales from the Romulan Neutral Zone

  20. What a wonderful walk, Jo. You saw so many interesting things along the way. Those colorful panels from the Codex Amiatinus, the ruins, that cross, and that wonderful reflection of clouds in the pond. Happy trails!! 🙂

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    1. There really is a lot to see around here, Cathy, if you go looking. I’ve meant to do this for months but life and weather sometimes get in the way. 🙂 🙂 All packed and ready to go? Safe and happy travels, darlin!

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      1. I’m sure there is, Jo, as there is for all of us. It’s amazing how much we can explore in our own backyards if we take the time to make the effort! I’m still working on the packing. Had some last minute errands to do, and now I’m loading stuff into the car. I have to squeeze in a bunch of stuff for Alex, including a rather large chair. I wasn’t counting on bringing all that stuff, although we had offered to do just that earlier. Thanks for the happy travel wishes. I also have to slowly get used to driving Mike’s Toyota RAV; I usually drive my small Corolla. Luckily it’s not too big and cumbersome, as I tried it out today. Have fun in my absence, as I’m sure you will. I’ll do my best to catch up when I return! 🙂

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