The Pergola

The Pergola and Hill Garden?

A few weeks back, I was feeling a little bored so decided to walk through the heath - unsure of where to go, thought I'd make my way to Golder's Hill (entering near gospel oak for obvious reasons). I thought of heading north towards Kenwood through the wooded section but got a little lost... A map may have been useful.

What is a pergola? I was intrigued so I walked over.
It is there on the maps, Hampstead Heath is hardly the shrinking violet of London's green spaces but I've since not met a single person that has heard of it let alone been there. What a delight. Both to go there and also to let other people know of it. Mainly to let other people know.
As described here [link], the space has an interesting past and a lovely interlinked tube connection - some of the positive knock on effects of the tube where it was actually thought about. A smaller version of a Berlin mound [link] I saw whilst there in 2010.
For me, it was entirely unexpected so as I walked near it, I had no idea what it was. It looked grand - and grandeur is not lacking around these parts. The pergola itself is fenced off and the garden appears gated so I assumed it was private. The gate, however, had a closing time...

Walking in, it felt rather evocative, but I'm not exactly sure what of.

The pergola itself gave good shade from the sun and was not busy. There were people there but few enough that you could often look around and nobody else would be in view most of the time. My personal musical accompaniment of the Shadow Of The Colossus soundtrack [link] may have helped it really felt like a faded beauty - a space where once ostentatiousness was normal.

The actual building is not so big, and even the garden is not massive but it is large enough to feel lost in and empty enough for the same feeling. The grounds are well tended with nice flowers, a little pond and a sloping garden seemingly designed for sunbathing.

Here's the map:

View Larger Map

And here are some photos that might be a little clearer than the ones embedded in the post!

Pergola and Heath