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Bourton House

Located in the village of Burton-on-the-Hill, in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, Bourton House is an eighteenth-century manor house with a sixteenth-century Tithe Barn. It is surrounded by a three-acre garden and a seven-acre walled pasture that is now planted with specimen trees. The Jacobean-style house was originally built in 1598 and was shortly thereafter purchased by the wealthy London lawyer Sir Nicholas Overbury. There is a dark history involving Overbury's son, which includes adultery and murder. It is quite a convoluted story, and I don't believe any of the shady dealings actually took place at Bourton House. You can read the story here and decide for yourself. An interesting note about these manor houses and gardens is that the front of the houses usually faced the back of the property. At least that was the case with Hidcote and Kiftsgate . The same here with Bourton House, where the entrance to the property (right next to a busy street) contained a litt...
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Okochi Sanso Villa & Gardens



One of my favorite gardens on the tour was the Okochi Garden that was created by Japanese actor Denjiri Okochi. Located in the northwest hills above Kyoto, it was a picture of tranquility.

First, we walked through a Bamboo Forest to get there -


A pathway led from the forest path up the hill to a garden entrance -



The main house -


A menagerie of pathways encircle the house and winds around the perimeter of the house. 




At one spot, an open pavilion called the "Moonlight Pavillion" provides a fantastic view of the city of Kyoto.






The creator of this paradise, Denjiro Okochi (1898-1962) studied literature and dabbled in writing before he began an acting career in 1920's silent cinema. He specialized in period dramas and jidaigeki (samurai). One of his best-loved characters was Tange Sazen, a fictional swordsman with one arm, one leg and one eye. He played the role in numerous films.



He spent thirty years creating his garden and he died there of stomach cancer in 1962 at the age of 64.




Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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Comments

  1. Kris PetersonDecember 4, 2024 at 9:57 AM

    Beautiful and dramatic!

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  2. AnonymousDecember 4, 2024 at 4:24 PM

    What a breathtaking garden! Your photographs are stunning. Thank you for sharing this slice from your trip.

    ReplyDelete
  3. tz_gardenDecember 5, 2024 at 9:06 AM

    Such a peaceful place, and stunningly beautiful! It really looks like you lucked out on good weather for your trip.

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