Bristol has no shortage of peculiarities; from clocks with two-minute hands to the steepest street in the UK, we’re used to stumbling across some pretty odd things. Even among Bristol’s (almost) endless supply of colourful and creative houses, this unique home has been hiding right under many Bristolian’s noses for too long.
Since 1995, Jane Tarr has had a large nose sculpture stuck on the side of her house in Redland. Nicknamed ‘The House That Smells’, the original nose was made from chicken wire and papier mache. That lasted until “someone pushed a pole up one of the nostrils and it began to fall apart.”
After some short-term attempts to repair the nose, a second nose was made from willow in 2007 for the cost of £1,200. But, since then, birds have slowly been taking these sticks to build their nests of the 12ft snout. It means the nose house is looking a little less than perfect these days and is in desperate need of a nose job. Work will hopefully begin on the new nose shortly, but donations are needed to ensure its survival.
Jane has started a GoFundMe to keep the most famous nose in Bristol alive and sneezing. She is looking for £2,500 with a Zimbabwean sculptor, Kennedy Chinyere, having drafted up a proposal to create a new nose using local bamboo. This is a far stronger material than willow and will ensure the nose hangs around for decades more to come.
You can donate to The House That Smells’ new nose here.