Cragside Green Man created from Douglas fir

Oct 16 2010 by David Black, The Journal

HE’S big, he’s a bit scary-looking and he’s lurking in the woods at one of the region’s most popular historic attractions.

But families spending a day at the Cragside stately home near Rothbury, Northumberland, have no need to be alarmed when confronted by the latest newcomer to the rambling country estate.

The Green Man might resemble an alien invader from a sci-fi film – but in fact he is keeping a benevolent eye on visitors to the former home of Tyneside industrial pioneer Lord Armstrong.

The imposing sculpture has been carved from a massive 140-year-old Douglas fir in the Cragside grounds which fell victim to disease.

Nicknamed Douglas in the Valley by staff at the National Trust property, the stunning piece of natural art is the handiwork of award-winning tree sculptor and artist Tommy Craggs, from Consett, County Durham.

Inspired by the mythical Green Man, believed by our ancient ancestors to be the guardian of the forests, it has oak leaves patterning its face and took Tommy three days to carve into shape. The sculpture has taken pride of place among the trees on a path leading to Cragside’s pinetum.

Measuring seven feet in diameter, Douglas in the Valley has been worked from what remained of the 170ft-high fir felled several years ago.

Because of its position, and the difficulty of removing it, it was decided to leave the fallen tree to blend into its mossy surroundings. But after Tommy carved an eye-catching owl from a fallen oak in Cragside’s formal garden earlier this year, he was given free rein to turn the fir into a new focal point.

Alison Pringle, Cragside’s head gardener, said: “Traditionally, the Green Man is the watcher over the forest, from the tiniest sapling to the largest oak. It seems fitting that we should now have our own Green Man to watch over visitors. Tommy has done a fantastic job. It only took him three days to complete, but it is a work of art. It is truly beautiful.

“With it being fir it should have a good lifespan, and I hope part of its charm will be that over the years it will age and mellow, and slip back into being an integral part of the gardens.

“The fir stood proud for at least 140 years, and now in its own way the tree is still there and will continue to delight visitors to Cragside for generations more.

“Everybody who has seen it has loved it. It is a real surprise for people. They don’t know it is there and then they come around a corner in the path and there is Douglas in the Valley, staring gently out on the world.

“He really enhances the environment in what is already a beautiful garden.”