Vacuuming the carpet. Dusting the furniture. Washing the floors. New Year is often the time for a clear out.

Now imagine doing the same for a sprawling historic palace full of thousands of priceless artefacts.

But the annual deep clean at Blenheim Palace means caring for great artworks, fine tapestries and the fabric of the historic Palace itself.

And now the expert housekeeping team are sharing their top tips for how they keep 'Britain's greatest palace' looking spick and span.

Oxford Mail:

Taking place on selected dates throughout January, visitors will have the chance to speak to the Collections Team and watch them at work, cleaning and conserving a selection of historic items and artefacts.

Carmen Alvarez, Deputy Collections Manager, said: “Visitors enjoy having the opportunity to see these behind-the-scenes jobs and speak to the team.

"They can see the delicate work that goes into the upkeep of this historic house, preserving it for generations to come.

“This year our main focuses are on dusting high level parts of the Palace rooms using specialist equipment, inspecting each object and piece of furniture in what is one of Europe’s most extensive collections, and polishing the floors.”

Oxford Mail:

The Deep Clean focuses on some of the specific challenges of caring for a 300-year-old building and its priceless treasures.

As part of their 10-year goals, Blenheim said it is undertaking £40million worth of restorations around the Oxfordshire estate.

The cleaning events are on Friday, 13th January 10:30am – 2pm; Friday, 20th January 10:30am – 2pm and Friday, 27th January 10:30am – 2pm.

 

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This story was written by Miranda Norris, she joined the team in 2021 and covers news across Oxfordshire as well as news from Witney.

Get in touch with her by emailing: Miranda.Norris@newsquest.co.uk. Or find her on Twitter: @Mirandajnorris

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