274 ROCKWORK. [chap. X. 



stones, thrown together in a natural manner, 

 and planted with ornamental flowering plants, 

 principally exotic. The rockwork at Norbiton 

 Hali is disposed in the same manner as that at 

 Syon ; but it is on a smaller scale, and its prin- 

 cipal use is to keep moisture round the roots of 

 the plants which are planted among it. 



At Elvaston Castle, the seat of the Earl of 

 Harrington, near Derby, is a kind of rockwork 

 which certainly resembles the scenery of a 

 Highland glen much more than that at Syon. 

 It is constructed on a gigantic scale ; and, as it 

 is placed on the banks of" a long winding lake, 

 with the masses of rock sometimes rising into 

 steep precipices, and sometimes apparently 

 broken and torn asunder by some convulsion 

 of nature, it has a wonderfully natural effect. 

 Narrow winding paths, which appear, when 

 seen, like gullies worn by a mountain stream, 

 conduct the visitor by a gentle ascent to the 

 summit, from which a magnificent view is ob- 

 tained of the valley of rocks, the lake, and the 

 " trim garden" beyond, with its grassy terraces, 

 clipped trees, and numerous statues, looking 

 like a fairy land. 



The rockwork at Chatsworth is remarkable 

 for its close imitation of nature. Some of the 

 masses of rock weigh upwards of 370 tons 

 each, and in one place they are put together in 

 exact imitation of the Strid, a wild mountain 

 torrent at Bolton Abbey, the banks of which, 

 as represented at Chatsworth, are about thir- 

 teen feet high and 300 feet long. There are 

 also some fine specimens of rockwork in the 

 large conservatory, the rocks being planted so 



