page_title: Bekonscot
section_title: Miniature landscape
hierarchical_section_title: Bekonscot / Miniature landscape
caption_attribution_description: English: Model of Ascot races at Bekonscot model village, Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire.
context_page_description: Bekonscot in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, is the oldest original model village in the world. It portrays aspects of England mostly dating from the 1930s.
  Bekonscot was first created in the 1920s by a Beaconsfield resident, Roland Callingham. Callingham, an accountant, developed the master plan for his miniature empire as an addition to his large back garden, drawing in help from his staff: the gardener, cook, maid and chauffeur. Together they developed the model landscape portraying rural England at the time. The swimming pool became the first "sea" and the undulating rockeries were built up as hills. Bassett-Lowke, the large-scale model railway manufacturers, were commissioned to build an extensive Gauge 1 railway network for the project. Callingham named the village Bekonscot after Beaconsfield and Ascot, where he had lived previously.
  Bekonscot was not conceived as a commercial visitor attraction but as a plaything to entertain Callingham and his guests. It was only after 1930 that its existence became widely known, catching the imagination of the press and public alike.
context_section_description: The site covers approximately 2 acres (1 hectare), of which just over half is a miniature 1:12 landscape. Buildings are constructed in natural materials, concrete, or dense foam board, and many are originals from the 1920s.
  There are six model villages set within the miniature landscape. They are entirely fictional towns, but many buildings within them are based on UK prototypes.  Successive generations of modelmakers, gardeners and craftsmen have left their mark on their subjects, which display a wide range of vernacular architectural styles.
  Currently there are 12 full-time staff who maintain the village throughout the year. During the open season a further 20 or so seasonal staff are employed.
  Names of shops and other features include humorous puns, such as Lee Key Plumbers' Merchants ('Lee Key' = 'leaky'), Sam and Ella's Butchers ('salmonella') and the Mark Owney Wireless and Gramophone stores ('Marconi'). Other model villages have run with the playful nature of the miniature business names and it has become something of a model tradition.
caption: Model of Ascot Racecourse
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