Front room with a view... of medieval Coventry
A MODEL-maker has at least found lockdown useful for something... For Peter Garbett has spent over 800 hours building a detailed model of medieval Coventry, circa1509.
With King Henry VIII recently on the throne, the early 16th century was a time when Coventry, as a city, was of huge importance to the kingdom of England, featuring churches, castles and priories.
Mr Garbett said: “Henry VIII had just come to the throne, so he
hadn’t started his destructive bit, taking down the churches and things.
“Coventry, at that point, had built all its walls, they were all in place, and all its gates were pristine.” Mr Garbett, who moved to Coventry in the 1980s but now lives in Willenhall, has always been fascinated by the city’s history.
The 68-year-old has a Facebook group called Visit Historic Coventry, where like-minded people share their thoughts and converse on the city’s rich past. The fourmetre long model has been a real passion and he has been overwhelmed by the response.
But due to its sheer size he is keen to find a new home for it, preferably where others can enjoy it. Mr Garbett said while his wife had been supportive of the project, she was not too keen on having the model in their living room fulltime. He said: “I just want to get it somewhere it can be properly displayed, everybody can come and see it and get some enjoyment out of it.”
Mr Garbett, who worked as fireman, community safety officer and DJ before retiring, spent eight hours a day, seven days a week, for four months building his model. It includes the famous Cathedral – later destroyed by the Nazis – as well as rivers, homes and even a cattle. It gives an idea of what the city looked like before the war, as many of the buildings remained before the Blitz in 1940.