The ford across the Darent river at Eynsford, Kent in winter flood. This is the painter, Samuel Palmer’s ‘Valley of Vision’ with its own historic Roman villa and two castles.

Kent’s Darent Valley

The River Darent flows from its source in the Greensand hills through the North Downs to join the Thames, north of Dartford. This is designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

We lived not far from here for 14 years and one of our favourite short outings was to this picturesque ford and bridge at Eynsford – a mecca for photographers in Kent. In summer this is a gentle river. Children come here clutching fishing nets and buckets to try to catch minnows. Near by are the ruins of the Norman Eynsford Castle that was abandoned in 1321. It is managed by English Heritage.

Lullingstone Roman Villa

A visit up the road, passing under the graceful Grade II listed railway arches, leads to the Lullingstone Roman Villa.

Managed by English Heritage this is one of the best preserved high status Roman villas in the country. It was begun in about AD 100 and was in use until 460. It was discovered in 1939 by a farmer when digging for a fence post! The villa shows evidence of one of the first Christian house-churches in Roman Britain.

Picnicking outside the villa on the grass beside the quiet flowing river I remember hearing a cuckoo calling from a nearby bush. I wonder if the Romans heard them. Their villas were wisely placed on the south facing slopes, near to a supply of fresh water. This must have been an idyllic spot, much envied by those who had to settle on estates in the colder north.

Further along the valley is Lullingstone Castle, a family estate dating from the 15th century. Its well known World Garden contains plants from all over the world. Further still is the village of Shoreham, home of the painter Samuel Palmer from 1826-1835.

Samuel Palmer’s ‘Valley of Vision’

This was how Samuel Palmer described this valley when he lived in Shoreham. He was inspired by William Blake’s visionary painting and by John Bunyan’s great dream, Pilgrims Progress.

These Shoreham paintings have a dream-like quality, mysterious and visionary. Full of rustic charm and innocence they capture the romantic, peaceful landscape of England that was being lost to the Industrial Revolution.

Through his Christian faith Palmer saw earth as ‘the proscenium of heaven’ and his paintings as ‘visions of little dells and nooks and corners of paradise….a mystic and dreamy glimmer as penetrates and kindles the inner-most soul,

He often painted churches in his landscapes.

“which are, to the Christian’s eye, the most charming points of an English landscape – gems of sentiment for which our woods and green slopes, and hedgerow elms, are the lovely and appropriate setting .”

I love this enchanting etching full of pastoral peace.

“It seems to me the charm of etching is the glimmering through of the white paper even in the shadows so that almost everything sparkles or suggest sparkles.”

Samuel Palmer

The World of Art – changing fortunes

Sadly, like Blake’s visionary mystical paintings, Palmer’s early Shoreham works were not well received and he only shared them with friends. But in recent years these paintings have become more widely acclaimed. Kenneth Clark, in his epic BBC series ‘Civilization’ saw Palmer as the English Van Goch.

To mark the 200th anniversary of his birth in 2005 major exhibitions of his work were held in the British Museum, London and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

It’s easy to see why Samuel Palmer’s deeply peaceful paintings have become so popular in our restless modern age searching for an escape from hectic 21st century life. At an auction at Sotheby’s, New York in 2018 the painting ‘A Church a Boat and Sheep’ (shown above) sold for $2,415,000 !

If you are interested I recommend this excellent lecture