Amazing model of lost Ipswich mansion, Holywells goes on display

A new scale model of lost Ipswich Mansion, Holywells will go on display at the Family Day and Cobbold 300 event at Holywells Park on Saturday June 24.
The free event runs from 11am to 6pm, with music, dance, food and beer through the day.
Ipswich modelmaker Stuart Hawkins, whose previous scale models include a very detailed one of Christchurch Mansion, has turned his attention to Holywells.
The mansion on what is now Holywells Park was the home of the Cobbold brewing and banking family for five generations.
But following the Second World War, into the 1950s and 1960s, at a time of great social change homes of this size were no longer needed. Many, including Holywells, fell into disrepair and were lost.
Eventually Holywells was troubled by rot and it was demolished, in 1962. The Orangery (conservatory) remains and has been restored, and so does the Stable Block which includes public tea rooms.
Stuart Hawkins has been making models of all sorts of buildings since his 20s including famous houses from fiction and movies. He made a model of 4 College Street, near Wolsey’s Gate, before it had been restored.
Apart from balsa wood he uses all recycled materials, including cereal packets, packaging from bought products and the like.
He said: “It does take a lot of time but I like. Each brick is individually drawn, and the tiles are cut singly and then stuck on.”
Why Holywells?
“I remember I used to play on the park as a boy and use the pool. Once we got locked in and had to climb the walls to get out. We heard there used to be a big house there. I decided to look into it but there weren’t a lot of records.”
Holywells House was built alongside the original Pitts Farm and was frequently adapted and changed over time to suit the owners. He researched photographs and plans for his model.