Day 4 - Somerset

As we limber up for the first leg of the relay the torch passes through the historic county of Somerset, home of the city of Bath. Here's a book from MoDA's collection that offers a less picturesque view of this usually pretty city.

A dystopian future for Bath?
The Sack of Bath, Adam Fregusson, 1973, Museum of Domestic Design & Architecture, JMR447.

The Sack of Bath is about the threat of destruction to Bath's Regency architecture as development in the city encroached on it's historic buildings in the 1970s. This cover image shows the potential terrible consequences of  not looking after the city's architectural heritage by using a dramatic image and evocative title.The famously elegant  and beautiful buildings usually top the league as a tourist attraction. However, this vision of Bath  wouldn't win any medals for beauty or cleanliness!