Jeremiahs Trunk
Cód:
491_9780648421801
In Australia, Abigail Skinner is grieving over the recent death of her mother, Dorothy, when a solicitor calls to inform her of a bequest from her late Aunt Jane. Abigail is surprised to inherit an old oak trunk which according to Ignatius and Hilary, her older brother and sister, purportedly belonged to Jeremiah Skinner, a nineteenth century convict ancestor.Included with the old contents of the trunk is a package of notes, compiled by Jane to write the ancestors family history, and two exquisite paintings by Jonathan Sargood. Ignatius is annoyed that a rare piece of Staffordshire pottery known as Canaliaware is missing and blames Abigail, causing a serious rift between the siblings.However, it is a letter addressed personally to Abigail from her Aunt Jane that turns her world upside down. A well-respected actress, Jane confesses that thirty years ago, on giving birth to Abigail, she gave her up for adoption to her brother, Edward and his wife, Dorothy. Jane omits to name Abigails biological father. Such a revelation devastates Abigail, but she wishes to keep the truth for the time being from her brother and sister. When Abigail further discovers three nineteenth century journals concealed under the false floor of Jeremiahs trunk, she is deflected from her personal angst as she delves into the hitherto unknown history of her forebears, who lived in the Potteries of the British Midlands. Her ancestor, Leticia Skinner, writes of her Dame school, her twelve-year-old son, Jeremiah, her friendship with the narrow boat people of the canals, her reunion with Jonathan Sargood, a Royal Academician artist and her sons father, and life thereafter in the gracious Winston Manor, home to the Sargood family of potters. Abigail immerses herself in the historical importance of the inland waterways, as various real life characters including Josiah Wedgwood, James Brindley and John Constable feature in the journals.At the age of twenty-one, Jeremiah, now a part-time artist and po
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