Grotto To South East Of The Old Mill In Melbourne Hall Gardens

The grotto, located to the southeast of the Old Mill in Melbourne Hall Gardens, dates from the early 19th century. It is constructed of red brick and covered in tufa, shells, and marble. The grotto features a low segmental headed alcove with a small semi-circular headed marble niche at the back, which overlooks a small stone pool. Above the niche is a marble inscription that reads:

"Rest weary stranger in this shady cave,
And taste, if languid, of the mineral wave,
There's virtue in the draught, for health that flies,
From crowded cities and their smoky skies,
Here lends her power from every glade and hill
Strength to the breeze."
C Lamb.

This grotto is a later addition to an early 18th-century garden designed by London and Wise, who were gardeners to Queen Anne, for Thomas Coke of Melbourne Hall. It is included in the Derbyshire Historic Gardens Register at Grade I.