Henry's Kitchen

If you've been following "The Tudors" on Showtime cable, you may be familiar with Hampton Court, Henry VIII's country estate, just southwest of London. It originally belonged to Cardinal Wolsey, The Archbishop of York, but he later gave it to Henry, who developed it further and it has been added to and renovated over the ages. It's truly spooky to walk through the rooms here on a dark November afternoon thinking back on all the historical figures that occupied the exact same space hundreds of years ago. You can walk the halls and look out the windows to the same courtyards as Henry VIII, Ann Boleyn and Jane Seymour.
In most of the interior spaces photography is not allowed, but the kitchen areas are an exception. This huge fireplace is still working and served as one of the cooking areas for hundreds of people on a daily basis. One lucky gentleman(at least in the winter)gets to tend this baby as tourists wander through the otherwise cold rooms of the traditional kitchens. The old utensils, ovens, walls and doors make a fantastic photographic subject. I love the color, texture and atmosphere of this kind of place.

"Henry's Kitchen"-U.K., 2008