In 1893 (the year The Stereoscopic Society was founded) Henty Oakley purchased Dewstow estate in Monmouthshire (https://www.dewstowgardens.co.uk/), and created a wonderful garden containing a grotto constructed by the famous Pulham company of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire. After Oakley’s death in 1940 the gardens were neglected and the grottoes filled in and forgotten. The estate was purchased by the Harris family in 2000, who discovered steps leading underground, re-discovered the amazing Pulhamite grotto and restored it. These images were taken in my visit in July 2021 using my Fuji W3 and twin GoPro Hero3 Black cameras.
There is more information about the Pulham company and the gardens they worked on in https://pulham.org.uk/, and also in the book ‘Rock Landscapes, The Pulham Legacy’ by Claude Hitching, published by Garden Arts Press. The book gives details of many of the sites that the Pulham Company worked on, including Sandringham, Buckingham Palace, Waddesdon Manor, Sheffield Park gardens and Ross Hall Park, Glasgow. Its a fascinating read. I was fortunate to meet Claude Hitching several times and showed him round the Pulhamite Grotto at Brickendonbury, near Hertford, where I worked.
See another Pulham grotto; Pulhamite Grotto in the Swiss Garden, Old Warden, Beds, UK
It’s a wonderful place to explore.
Nature and Travel Photography in 3D 