New beginnings at Cotehele this spring

When Cotehele House and Cotehele Mill re-open on Saturday 7 March after their winter conservation care, visitors to the National Trust estate near Saltash will notice lots of changes.

To commemorate the 400th anniversary of the sailing of the Mayflower, a new collections trail, Tide and Time, highlights the transatlantic connections of items through the house, reflecting on English relations with America throughout history and the impact of British colonialism on ‘life at home’.

‘Cotehele house has the feeling of somewhere that’s quintessentially English, so it is really interesting to look at the collection in this new way,’ says Nick Stokes, House and Collections Manager for the National Trust.

‘From eighteenth century wassail cups made from exotic woods imported from the Caribbean to seventeenth century woodwork and pewter made by Devon craftspeople who later emigrated and made their careers in New England, Cotehele is filled with the stories of centuries of transatlantic voyages’ continues Nick.

Tide and Time also includes a rare collection item, brought out of storage for display this year - a native American birch box embroidered with moose hair and porcupine quills. The decoration on the side panels shows scenes of Native Americans and Europeans living their very different lives in exquisite detail.

Returning to display in the house are two tapestries; Leander takes leave of his parents and Death of Leander which have been re-hung in King Charles’s bedroom. This March will be the first time visitors have had the chance to see the tapestries after they were removed five years ago for conservation repairs partly funded by the National Trust’s Special Places raffle.

Visitors in March will also get a first look at the new Bull Pen Gallery in the historic farmyard area behind the Barn restaurant and Cotehele shop and plant centre. This gallery will exhibit the work of local artists and craftspeople in an accessible building and will feature regular ‘meet the artist’ events across the year. Bull Pen Gallery opens with a preview evening on Friday 6 March, 5-7pm.

From Saturday 7 March, Cotehele House and Mill and the Bull Pen Gallery will be open seven days a week. Milling demonstrations will be on Thursdays and Sundays. Cotehele’s shop, Barn restaurant, Edgcumbe tea-room, garden and estate are open daily all year round. For all details and more information ring 01579 351346 or visitwww.nationaltrust.org.uk/cotehele