Jubilee gate links the Queen and Victoria

Friday, 29 June 2012

Mr Theed (back) with High Sheriff of Somerset Sylvana Chandler and Old Cleeve pupils Tansy Shandley-Edwards and Chae Davis.

A HAND-crafted wooden gate has been installed on the Combe Sydenham Estate to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.
The distinctive gate features an unusual diamond pattern and is based on an original which is believed to have been made to mark Queen Victoria’s diamond celebrations back in 1897.
The estate’s current owner William Theed commissioned Minehead craftsman Ian Pope to make the 14-by-nine foot wooden structure to commemorate Queen Elizabeth’s own diamond year.
“It is very intricate and is made of local West Somerset wood.
“It is an identical copy of a gate that was there 100 years ago,” Mr Theed said.
He said he could not be certain the original had been made for Queen Victoria’s jubilee, but it seemed highly likely given the age of the first gate and the unusual design.
“Why else would they make a diamond-shaped gate?
“It seemed only fitting to official open the new gate on the exact date of Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee - June 22,” Mr Theed said.
He invited pupils from Old Cleeve First School and the Queen’s representative in Somerset, High Sheriff Sylvana Chandler to do the honours.
He said he had also received a letter from Buckingham Palace after writing to the Queen to inform her of the project to mark both hers and her great-great-grandmother’s diamond celebrations.
Photo: Steve Guscott

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