Abbot's Willow

View of a tall and lush willow standing near a stream where cows go to drink. This tree is described as follows by the author:

The specimen of the Willow exhibited in the plate, is of the species termed by botanists Salix Alba, and is probably for size and age unequalled in the kingdom. It stands in the grounds of John Benjafield, Esq., at Bury St. Edmunds, on a part of the ancient demesne of the Abbot of Bury, and which was in the actual possession of the monastery at the time of its dissolution.

From the uncommon size of the tree, and its being called “The Abbot,” conjecture may lead us to suppose that it was planted previously to the dispersion of the members of that far-famed and splendid establishment, which took place in the reign of Henry VIII. Of this, however, there is no certain proof; but its vast dimensions plainly indicate it to have been the growth of centuries. Notwithstanding the great space its spreading branches occupy, it has hitherto suffered but little either from wind or time, nor does it at present exhibit any symptoms of decay.