The old timbers in our great room are treasures of sorts. Most came from old barns, repurposed for our house. The horizontal one above with the peg sticking out of it and below, above the stone fireplace, are chestnut. Chestnut trees don't grow here anymore since they succumbed to blight.
These beams came from an old church in Northern Baltimore County that was built in Colonial times, likely late 1600s or early 1700s. So these trees were growing in this area before Europeans arrived. A bit mind boggling I know. The timber framer who built this portion of the house found these beams laying by the church after a major renovation had taken place which removed them. He got a good deal and originally hadn't planned to use them in our house, but changed his mind.
But here's a new treasure that will go with us: the latest painting by my husband. His father was a Washington DC policeman hence the jacket and baton, his maternal grandfather was a founder of the Franconia fire department and his paternal grandfather was a train engineer. One of the engines he drove is in the Smithsonian.
Joining Tuesday Treasures