What the heck is a lek?
Males great bustards perform spectacular courtship displays, gathering at a ‘lek’ or small display ground to try to impress the females.
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Over 1,000 lost and discarded objects have been discovered in the medieval water channels that once ran through the streets of Salisbury. They are a vivid reminder of the citizens, pilgrims, craftsmen, merchants and travellers going about their business in the city over many centuries.
Constructed in the 1220s, at the time of the Salisbury’s founding, the channels provided a water supply and drainage. But over time they became dirty, smelly and a breeding ground for disease. In just three months in 1849, cholera claimed almost 200 victims – one in every 45 inhabitants.
In 1854 city officials began building deep drains for sewage and a piped water supply. This saved many lives and unearthed a vast array of objects – which became the founding collection of Salisbury Museum.
The Drainage Collection contains hundreds of keys – which opened chests, doors, boxes, cabinets and padlocks – ranging in date from 13th – 18th century. At a time when keys were individually made by hand, keys and locks were valuable commodities and not easily replaced. When people moved house locks were sometime taken too and keys were carried as a symbol of power and authority.
These keys were commonly used by friars to open their cell doors. Could this have been lost by a medieval friar from Salisbury’s Franciscan friary on St Ann Street? It is rare to find one with its point still intact.
This key could have been made in Augsberg or Nuremberg – German centres for production of iron money chests. For security these chests had complicated locking mechanisms often requiring more than one key. How did the owner open his reinforced iron chest on his return home?
A rare example of an unfinished key. Was it dropped in the drainage channel by an apprentice to hide his bad workmanship from his master? Or did an angry locksmith throw it away after a customer cancelled an order?
A finely crafted handmade key, used for a dresser, cabinet or bureau. The intricate decoration of foliage, monograms and crowns and a rare twisted spiral shank was made possible by new cutting techniques. The key’s owner would have keenly felt its loss.
These keys were selected by the Drainage Collection Working Group – a group made up of local people who co-curated the re-display of the Drainage Collection in the new Salisbury Gallery. From over 1,000 objects the group hand-picked those objects they found intriguing, unusual and with a story to tell, and researched and wrote the text for each object.
Jennifer Blake, from the Drainage Collection Working Group, wrote:
“I selected the English fine key as it expresses the skill of the metal worker – it shows how highly accomplished Salisbury locksmiths were, not just in making a workable key, but a beautiful one too. It also confirms the high status of a Salisbury resident or visitor who would have owned it. It makes you wonder who did own it? What did they do when they found it was missing – and how costly was it to replace?”
Males great bustards perform spectacular courtship displays, gathering at a ‘lek’ or small display ground to try to impress the females.
The great bustard has a dignified slow walk but tends to run when disturbed, rather than fly.
The hen-bird on display at The Salisbury Museum was one of the last great bustards to be eaten in the town!