Camelot Where You Are, #4

It would be fun to make you guess where this bit of Camelot is located. Some of you surely recognize it. Even if you can't identify it you can tell this is the real wall of a real castle.

This entry comes from Dive. He recently clarified the difference between a castle and a palace for his blog readers at Small Glass Planet: "a castle is a fortification and will often have a hall or palace within it; a palace is merely a big house were someone self-important happens to live." Being a well-read architect, Dive is qualified to make the clarification.

What we have here is a castle, namely, the Tower of London. What a place! If and when you visit London, don't skip it. I don't care how over-rehearsed your guide is (mine was a riot), go. The history, the glory, the depravity, the years, the anguish, it's still there, you can't help but feel it and if you don't you're wearing too much armor.

I knew those hole-in-the-wall thingies were for arrows. I asked Dive what they're called.

"Those 'thingies' are known locally as 'wossnames'," said Dive, "but more correctly are simply called 'arrow slits'. The opening behind them (a niche big enough for a couple of men and their bows) is called the 'embrasure'."

You don't find a lot of wossnames in modern America, but you find them in Camelot.

Thank you, Dive!

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Stay tuned! Tomorrow and Sunday we'll vote for this week's favorite entry. Each weekly winner gets a free copy of my new book, Camelot & Vine, upon publication in October. Publication day is the final day for entries.

I'm excited about the Camelot Where You Are photo contest. It's easy to enter and anyone can do it. I'll accept entries until the day the book is published, which should be in early to mid-October. So send in your pics! Entry details are here.