Astrid's Photo Treasure Hunt - week ending 09/07/2021

This week's word is 'Grill'.  There are many uses for this word - a grill over a window in an old castle - or an old style railway ticket office - a grill over a fire to cook food.  I had many choices but not many pictures to fit the word.  So it has been quite a hunt for suitable ones to use.

A few miles away is the Helmshore Mills Textile Museum.  We have been twice, once to take a young grandson and the other some South African friends as Tom is fascinated by machinery, and this place is full of that. It was once a very profitable woollen and cotton mill.  We were the only ones on both occasions so got a personalised tour.   What was horrific to  hear was that very small children used to work in the mills.  I have actually copied the next paragraph as I could not have written it better. 

Scavengers were the lowliest of the apprentices at the cotton mills and had to endure the worst conditions. They were employed to work under the machinery to clean up the dust and oil and to gather the cotton that had been thrown off the mule by its intent vibrations.  The tenters would not stop to allow the scavengers to work because they were paid by how much they could produce.  As the mule moved forwards the children were sent under the machine, sweeping and gathering the cotton. They had to then time their retreat so as to not become entangled within the many working parts.  Many lost limbs and even their lives by being entangled in the machinery.  These children had started in the mills at around the age of four, working as scavengers until they were eight before progressing to the role of piecers.  They worked 14 - 16 hours a day, beaten if they fell asleep, until they were 15.  

Below is a 'mule' that moved back and forwards on the rails you can see on the floor.  There are no grills to protect the children, only the ones over the machinery to protect it. 

But in the second picture you can see grills have been put up but that was not to keep the women's clothing out of the machinery but to keep visitors to the museum away from the more dangerous machinery. 

This next picture was taken of a portcullis ** at the the main entrance to Etal Castle, a ruined medieval fortification in the village of Etal, Northumberland.  It was built around 1341 by Robert Manners, with a residential tower, gatehouse and curtain wall. It was built on the banks of the River Till as a defence against those pesky marauding Scots!!   My mother's maiden name was Manners so I like to think we have a connection to it.  In the car park I picked up a small piece of broken wall as my inheritance! 

** I'm sure that can count as a grill. 

My final 'grill' picture is really a grill.  It was taken by a friend of my daughter-in-law in South Africa of their 'braai' (Barbecue) to make her jealous! Made my mouth water too when she sent it on to me. T bone steaks sizzling on the braai...I can almost smell them.  

 

                         Now off to see how others have interpreted the word 'grill' this week.  xx