Dandelion enjoys a hard won reputation for success in foraging for a fascinating variety of old stone and metal garden curiosities. This small man and wife firm have over the last seven years, discovered many intriguing garden antiques which they have salvaged from old textile mills, Victorian-built factories and houses undergoing demolition.
 
Dandelion travels all over Northern England and Southern Scotland seeking out stone and metal garden antiques from ancient farms, barns, cottages and old industrial buildings. Here are examples of what has been sourced:
 
Rossendale Ice Age 'Erratic' Boulder Trough
About two years ago whilst attending a farm sale high in the Rossendale Fells, we purchased a beautiful old stone trough in the form of a glacial boulder, known as an 'erratic', which probably had been hand carved into a trough 250 years ago. During the winter of 2014-15, a north Lancashire Dandelion customer had an old tree felled on the edge of their garden, leaving a not-unattractive stump covered in moss thrusting up among the perennial plants and shrubs.
 
To enhance the natural beauty of the moss and lichen-covered tree stump, the owners pondered on mounting a small old stone trough upon the stump. Our customer, upon trawling through the large stock of antique stone troughs, old millstones and other old stone garden curiosities on the Dandelion website, on seeing this wonderful-looking Rossendale 'boulder' stone trough, quickly snapped up this ancient stone curiosity.
 
After we delivered the stone trough, our customer had it mounted upon the top of the tree stump. And what an amazing, eye-catching display the trough is, after having been planted with a mix of colourful primulas.
 
Cast-Iron Bread Pans
Whilst visiting an old South Yorkshire Bakery in the throes of being demolished, we managed to purchase a half dozen cast-iron bread pans dating back to the late 19th century. Planted out with colourful flowers, the bread pans make unusual, yet attractive planters.
 
Cast-Iron Cauldrons Or Cooking Pots
During the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Coalbrookdale's iron foundries turned out countless thousands of cast-iron cauldrons, simply known as cooking pots, many being exported to distant parts of the British Empire. It is rumoured that South Sea Islanders placed the famous Captain Cook into a large Coalbrookdale-made cast-iron cooking pot where the gallant Yorkshire naval Captain met his fate.
 
Whilst rummaging inside a dark and dusty old stone Pennine barn, we discovered two Coalbrookdale-type cast-iron cooking pots. Forgetting poor old Captain Cook's fate, one of the cauldrons shown in the photograph makes a truly superb planter for the white flowered rhododendrons.
 
Cheshire Cheese Stone Press Blocks
The Cheshire Cheese makers of old used huge sandstone blocks as weights set into rudimentary timber and iron-built cheese presses. Dandelion sourced two old sandstone cheese press blocks from outside an ancient cottage located south west of Chester. The owner of the property informed us that around seventy years earlier, a relative had chiselled the top of one of the press stones to form a trough or planter. Our expert stone carver later chiselled out a deep, bowl-shaped depression in the top of the other cheese press block, thus forming another beautiful planter. Both of these old sandstone planters now much covered in attractive mosses and lichens, and planted with a variety of colourful primulas and alpines make a delightful, eye-catching display which would stunningly set off any garden or courtyard.
 
York Stone Sinks And Salting Tables
Overtime, Dandelion has sourced from old Lancashire and Yorkshire farm houses and cottages quite a goodly number of slabby, shallow sinks hewn from York stone. Many of these stone sinks were sited in kitchens, sculleries and dark, cool cellars. When mounted about three feet from the ground on either stone blocks or brick walls, these old stone sinks make excellent planters for displaying collections of alpines, dwarf heathers or miniature bulbs. Several stone sinks grouped together can form attractive cascades in water features.
 
Salting Tables
Salting tables were another type of York stone shallow sinks, the difference being at one end there was a flat, smooth 'table'. In early Victorian times, when winter approached, these stone tables were used for the heavy salting of beef, pork, poultry and fish. Old York stone sinks and salting tables can look truly amazing if tastefully incorporated into kitchens or bathrooms. Due to their ruggedness, they can also serve in stables for boot and tack cleaning operations.
 
Old Pennine Gritstone Troughs
Until the middle of the 20th century, in towns and villages all over Britain old sandstone and granite horse troughs could be seen at the side of roads and pathways. In towns and village centres could be found large stone troughs, together with cast-iron hand pumps. Carved stone troughs would originally be sited in farms or industrial stables for draught horses as used for example by breweries and the old railway companies. The enormous range of sizes of stone troughs can reflect the original use.
 
A superb Yorkshire gritstone hand-hewn trough was unearthed from an ancient sheep pasture on a barren Pennine fell side near Cowling. It was carved from a huge block of gritstone probably quarried on Earl's Crag. Hereabouts, huge gritstone troughs such as this specimen are called 'wells' and were used as horse and cattle drinking troughs. This rare-to-find 8 feet stone trough would look fabulous if placed beneath a window or forming the centre piece in a stone-floored courtyard or stables.
 
We also salvaged a rare, circular old York gritstone pig or goose feeding trough from a late 17th century, South Pennine farm yard. This truly eye-catching centre piece would look stunning planted out with summer bedding.
 
Old Rossendale Standing Stoop
Whilst driving around the former cotton towns of Lancashire or woollen towns of Yorkshire, we occasionally chance upon the sad sight of demolition contractor's diesel drinking mechanical monsters ravaging an old textile mill. On one such day, whilst visiting the demolition of an early 19th century Rossendale Valley cotton mill, we managed to purchase from the site manager a most enigmatic, grey sandstone pillar which displays a number of mind-boggling, hand-cut notches and holes. The Rossendale stoop would make a superb centre piece either in a lawn, flower bed or if set up on a stone-flagged court yard.
 
The Gibbet Stone - A Real Museum Piece!
This squat, conical-shaped sandstone curiosity, with a 9 inch square hole in the centre, was used in centuries past for supporting a hangman's "Gibbet" comprising a stout oak post with cross-trees for the hanging of criminals such as highwaymen, robbers or other felons. The oak post would be firmly wedged into the square hole hewn into the top of the large, conical-shaped sandstone block which was buried in the ground.
 
Following a severely painful death by hanging, the lifeless body would be taken off the rope and then forced into a cage of iron suspended from the cross-tree of the Gibbet, thereby placing it on public display in the hope of deterring further criminal activity.
William Jobling, a Durham miner was hanged and Gibbeted at Jarrow in 1832. Together with James Cook, these were the last men to be executed on a Gibbet in England.
 
A rather gruesome description of Gibbeting:
"The felon's hanged carcase was placed into a cage made from flat bars of iron 2½" in breadth, the feet were placed in stirrups, from which a bar of iron went up each side of the head and ended in a ring by which he was suspended; a bar from the collar went down the breast; and another down the back; there were also bars in the inside of the legs which communicated with the above; and cross-bars at the ankles, the knees, the thighs, the bowels, the breast and the shoulders; the hands were hung by the side and covered in pitch; the face was pitched and covered with a white cloth".
 
Old York Millstones
Dandelion has sourced old millstones and grindstones from all over Northern England. Old millstones are superb for the creation of water features, they can also be used as attractive pathways, or to form raised flower beds. From time to time Dandelion customers have commissioned us to carve house names onto suitable old millstones.
 
Old York Stone garden benches
Beautiful old York stone garden benches created from stone window heads and sills salvaged from demolished cotton and woollen mills.
 
Dandelion would be delighted to hear from anyone requiring old stone and metal garden curiosities.
 
World From Rough Stones House,
Farling Top, Cowling, North Yorkshire, BD22 0NW
Tel: 01535 637153 or 07971 906105