Very frequently one sees near the doors of houses in Canterbury (and elsewhere no doubt) installations like those on the right. I presume they are boot scrapers and were useful in the days when the roads and pavements weren't concretised. Except on rare unfortunate occasions, they are nowadays ornamental and a reminder of what life must've been like in another time. The oldness of Canterbury is generally charming, but, for the cyclist, for example, impractical. The roads tends to be too narrow to accommodate a car and a bicycle and thus many cyclists use the pavement. This, however, is not entirely satisfactory either as there is sometimes a) no room to accommodate and bicycle and a pedestrian, b) no pavement either!
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Times gone by
Very frequently one sees near the doors of houses in Canterbury (and elsewhere no doubt) installations like those on the right. I presume they are boot scrapers and were useful in the days when the roads and pavements weren't concretised. Except on rare unfortunate occasions, they are nowadays ornamental and a reminder of what life must've been like in another time. The oldness of Canterbury is generally charming, but, for the cyclist, for example, impractical. The roads tends to be too narrow to accommodate a car and a bicycle and thus many cyclists use the pavement. This, however, is not entirely satisfactory either as there is sometimes a) no room to accommodate and bicycle and a pedestrian, b) no pavement either!
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