Wall Surrounding Sunken Garden Approximately 30 Metres South Of Blands Farmhouse, With Tunnel Entrances

The wall surrounding the sunken garden, located approximately 30 metres south of Blands Farmhouse, dates from the early 19th century and is constructed of sandstone rubble. The wall is roughly circular in shape, featuring a buttressed straight section on the west side. It includes seven bee boles with projecting flagstone caps. Recently, part of the wall on the north side has collapsed, along with an eighth bee bole. On the north-west side, stone steps lead up to the upper garden level, and there is a doorway that opens into an underground tunnel, which runs in two directions within the retaining wall. These tunnels are part of a network of underground passages. Historical accounts suggest that Arthur Burrow, known as 'Perpetual' for his work on perpetual motion machines, constructed the sunken garden using quarry waste and created tunnels to connect it with old coal workings. Burrow, who lived from 1759 to 1827, was a local lay preacher and had been apprenticed as a blacksmith. Some of the underground water courses may be linked to his experiments.