The intricate wood panelling of Sizergh Castle's Inlaid Chamber

In the land where centuries twist like banisters, Sizergh Castle, nestled in Westmorland, England, reveals its long history through its aged facade. The earliest part of the building is a tower of fourteenth or fifteenth century date. The Deincourt family owned this land from the 1170s, and in 1239, the estate passed into the hands of what became the Strickland family. It remained with them until it was gifted to the National Trust in 1950. The castle's current design is Grade I listed, and it remains the home of the Hornyold-Strickland family.

Some of the early furnishings date from the time of Walter Strickland, who married Alice Tempest in 1560. Alice made inventories of the house after her husband's death, which mention three oak armchairs and three chests still in the house. The castle features oak-panelled interiors, including the Inlaid Chamber, where the panelling is inlaid with floral and geometric patterns in pale poplar and dark bog-oak.

The contents of the Inlaid Chamber were sold to the Victoria and Albert Museum in the 1890s and were displayed as a reconstructed period room. The return of the panelling to its original location at Sizergh was advocated by authority Mark Girouard. The panelling returned in 1999 under a long-term loan, and in 2017 it was reported that the transfer of ownership to the National Trust had been made formal.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons