Fence Around the World: Part 1

As I travel for my day job and for personal vacations, I always have my eyes open for – you’ve guessed it – fence. I thought I might share some of my pictures with you since I have been collecting them for a while. I have also added some fence related words of wisdom!

A fence is a barrier, along with walls, railings and gates. I have addressed a few of them in this post.

Photos: Where best to start the tour but in our own back yard? Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, has some of the oldest fence in the country. This is a painted wood fence with a matching gate.

“Don’t ever take a fence down until you know why it was put up.”– Robert Frost

What is a fence to you? Is it a barrier to keep things in or to keep things out? Is it to hide a bad neighbor? Is it an enhancement to your property? Are you surrounding a swimming pool? Or is it for security? Is it just something that was put there before you bought the house?

 Photos: This elegant gold plated iron fence and gate system was found at historic Kensington Palace in London, home of numerous British monarchy including Princess Diana from 1981 until 1997.

“The grass may be greener on the other side of the fence, but you still have to mow it.”– Proverb quotes

Everybody has different fence needs. The one thing a fence will always do is change the look and character of your property – mostly for the better.

Photo: This rustic looking  garden fence and arbor uses various tree branches to achieve the look the homeowner was after. We visited the home and gardens that were open to the public near Queenstown, New Zealand.

Photo: A wall is also a barrier to distinguish border lines. This dry stone wall with its beautiful red flowers was captured in Alyko on the Greek island of Naxos. There, the soil is so rocky that rock walls are better to use than a fence that has to be installed in the ground.

Photo: This whitewashed concrete wall  just outside of London, England, is enhanced by the decorative accent and big pillars, lending a beautiful backdrop to the purple flowers. 

Photo: This ancient iron fence was found guarding a tomb in Wales. The rust has almost eaten through the iron rod. I wonder how old this fence is?

“The fence around a cemetery is foolish, for those inside can’t get out and those outside don’t want to get in.” –Arthur Brisbane (1864 – 1880)

Photo: We found this one inside the Se Cathedral in Portugal, built in 1147 and rebuilt in 1700 after an earthquake. This is part of an ornate iron gate. Imagine the work that went into creating the decorative tips of the curled iron.

Photo: This decorative iron fence was mounted on the edge of the El Tajo cliff in the ancient city of Ronda, Spain, protecting visitors from plunging 100 meters below.

“He sat on the fence so long that the iron has entered his soul.” – David Lloyd George

Photo: This is one of my favorite shots of an old wooden gate. It is only a walk gate, but upon further scrutiny there is an amazing amount of detail and craftsmanship shown.

Photo: The beautiful Greek island of Santorini housed this wooden lattice barrier. It was installed to hold back the wind and painted white to match the rest of the structures in the town of Oia.

Photo: Colombia, South America, was the home of this unusual fence built into a brick wall. I managed to take the picture as we were driving past it.

Photo: On the Big Island of Hawaii, I found this ornate gate that serves as a drive gate as well as a walk gate. The owner of the property was also the owner of Big Island fence company, so I imagine he had the equipment required to design and build such a pretty gate.

Photo: This one was in Louisiana. After Katrina had ravaged the area, the tides had risen so high that the fence was submerged. As the water receded, certain items were prevented from being swept out to sea by the fence.

Photo: Well, it’s not a fence exactly, but some creative New Zealander decided to make a sheep out of barbed wire and 3/8″ wire. Looks like it would work well for a full size chia pet!

“Careful as a naked man climbing a barbed wire fence.” – Cowboy Proverb

Photo: Lastly I am adding one of my own installations from the 90s; it’s a PVC fence, the type of fence that is gaining in popularity due to its low maintenance attributes. PVC fence will be around for a long time. When I installed this one, everything was white. Now, there is an array of colors and textures to choose from.  

So, that is the end of this blog, but I have a lot more interesting pictures to post, so there will be a part 2 coming soon! I will leave you with one last fence quote, this one from Will Rogers (1896 – 1935):

“There are three kinds of men. The one that learns by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence for themselves.”

In the next blog, I will write a little about a fence school as well as the fence convention.