Inside The Vintners' Hall near Mansion House Station

Near Mansion House station is the Vintners' Hall. When Geoffrey Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales the Vintners were here. Geoffrey's father was a witness on the original deeds to the land. The early building was burned down in The Great Fire of London. (See the Monument to the great fire, a column you can climb, for a fee, when it is open, near Monument station. For a map of London's underground go to the Transport for London website, tflgov.uk.

On the ceiling is their motto, in Latin. Vinum exhilarat animus. Translation? Wine excites the mind. Wine gladdens the soul. Wine gladdens the heart. Wine exhilarates the spirit.

For an account of a wine tasting and author book signing by a wine expert at this lovely venue see my next post.

Angela Lansbury, travel, food and wine writer and author of books of quotations. (See Lulu.com ; Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube Angela Lansbury author.)

Vintners' Hall, London, see swans and hear a swan song

The city and bank area of London near St Paul's cathedral is full of wonderful old and new buildings, statues and surprises. Take the tube (as Londoners fondly and metaphorically describe the underground railway) to Westminster and you are in a sic fi underground world. The architecture is staggering. It resembles Dhoby Ghaut in Singapore. But why has London's Westminster this hideous unadorned grey concrete and steel? (Luckily most other stations have lovely colours, murals and historical scenes.) Admittedly it is a contrast with the old world above. Five stops east on the circle line you come to Mansion House station.

Emerge into the light, or darkness in winter after 5 pm, lit by the street lights. St Paul's dome is around the corner. Emerge from Mansion House station and you come up to a futuristic cable stay pedestrian bridge. The 'cables' look diagonal but they are bent mid-way. 

When you get to the other side of the road, here's a statue of a man in a frock coat with a swan. This harks back to the time the Vintners (wine merchants) had rights over swans on the Thames river.   

Across the road is the Vintners' hall. You can walk into the lobby and see statues with more swans. 

If you are invited to attend a wine tasting event (see their website for events) you will see the main hall. 

The website is a delight. Play the vintner's song.

http://www.vintnershall.co.uk/?page=Vintners_Song

More about the Vintners and swans on this page of their website. Keep on that page because the pictures change until you reach one showing the swan banner.

http://www.vintnershall.co.uk/?page=gassiot_swan_rooms

More about the Vintners Hall and a wine tasting in a later post.