FOR decades people believed sketches of a fabulous fountain in the grounds of Wentworth Castle were no more than a legacy of wishful boasts from a landlord long dead.
But this week builders found proof the 18th century water feature was not just a figment of Thomas Wentworth’s legendary rivalry with his cousin at Wentworth Woodhouse, who he was always at pains to outclass.
A 100ft octagonal basin which the elaborate fountain head would have flowed into was unearthed during the creation of a garden.
Staff at the estate immediately called in West Yorkshire Archaeological Service to verify the find, which places the estate among the most remarkable Baroque water gardens of its heyday.
