Milestone (photo Charles Monkhouse)
Milestone (photo Charles Monkhouse)
Sites of Meaning is an installation of stone and text around the parish boundary of Middleton and Smerrill in the Derbyshire Peak. Created by the local community, the project worked with professional artists, masons, photographers and poets to explore the parish's geography and heritage at the time of the millennium.
Middleton and Smerrill lies in the Derbyshire Peak. Created by the antiquarian Thomas Bateman, the village is built on stone and out of stone. With a population of only 120, it has a triangular 15 mile boundary marked by a Roman road, old mining rakes and the meandering river Bradford; with constructed pools, ancient sheep dips, ruined mills, soughs and clapper bridge. It encompasses the great henge of Arbor Low, the ruins of Fullwood Castle and Thomas Bateman’s Tomb, while at Smerrill, the remains of a medieval village disturb the grass. About half the residents have worked the land and mines for generations, the other half commute to surrounding villages and towns.
Inspired by other text and stone works around Derbyshire, such as the 18th century Guide Stoops and the Three Ships on Birchin Edge, Sites of Meaning marks the seven-teen entrances to the parish with inscribed stone sculptures. Each inscription was cho-sen by a parishioner, giving public voice to private feelings at the time of the millen-nium. Sites of Meaning grew to be more than a set of stones.
As confidence grew, a sculpture residency, then heritage project and finally a major publicity drive, promoted Sites of Meaning as a significant visitor attraction for the region.
Site 3 Bradford Dale (photo Charles Monkhouse)
SITES OF MEANING Case Study