Relic, something that has fallen into disuse over time but worthy of preservation, as is this very rare Bee Shelter at Hartpury St Mary’s Church in Gloucestershire.
The shelter, carved in Cotswold stone by stonemason Paul Tuffley, shows gable wall plinths, Doric columns and a ridge-crest roof. The finials depict surface decoration showing flying bees. There are 33 niches or boles to accommodate straw ‘bee skeps’, the fore-runner of modern bee-hives.
It was built between 1824 and 1852 and had fallen into disuse by 1960 and saved by Gloucestershire Beekeeping Association preventing its certain demolition. Originally sited in an ornamental garden in Painswick, Glos, it was moved to Hartpury Agricultural College, and later moved to the present site at St Mary’s church, Hartpury where is was fully restored by the Hartpury Historic Land and Buildings Trust. It’s sited in the churchyard and facing north as it was in its original position.