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Journal of Architectural Conservation

Volume 14 Number 1 March 2008

Editorial

Elizabeth Hirst

March is a time of transition. We learned, as children, that this is the month that comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. That lion has certainly taken its toll this year. In the months that have passed since our last issue, much of the northern hemisphere has seen remarkably severe weather. Paradoxically, the phenomenon of global warming has given us dramatic and destructive winter storms on both sides of the Atlantic. These have served as a reminder that most of us on the planet, although increasingly electronic in the daily affairs of our lives, remain inextricably tied to the changing seasons.

The contributions to this edition of the Journal take us on both local and international journeys, each of which highlights the complexities and demands of conservation projects that are ever present, however exotic the location.

The early use of concrete, and the inherent technical challenges that this material presents for conservation, is explored by Alan Wright and Peter Kendall in ‘The Listening Mirrors’. The mirrors in question are large concave profiled concrete surfaces, designed between the World Wars to reflect sound waves and allow early warning of an aerial attack. The invention, not altogether successful, was soon superseded by radar. However, three of these huge, unusual objects remain in Greatstone, Kent and are listed as part of our cultural heritage. Wright and Kendall describe the intricate process of their structural stabilization and conservation, highlighting the advice of a master mason and concrete repair contractor for the repair of twentieth-century concrete, a material which is still a comparatively new addition to the buildings conservation portfolio.

In his highly enjoyable paper Jonathan Howard describes Snowshill Manor in the Cotswolds and its eccentric owner Charles Paget Wade who, between 1919 and 1951, put together an eclectic collection of artefacts in a very specific arrangement. The house and its collection were handed over, as a complete unit, to the National Trust in 1951. The principal theme of the paper concerns the realities of managing an atypical historic building and its content, highlighting the Trust’s initial struggle to preserve the ‘spirit of the place’ while at the same time making it commercially, physically and intellectually accessible to visitors.

British conservation architect Francis Maude recounts his involvement with the repair of the early twentieth-century Founder’s building which forms part of the Queen’s Royal College in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad. Maude’s paper details the logistics of supervising a complex building conservation project, often from a distance of several thousand miles, whilst simultaneously dealing with unfamiliar local materials and standards of workmanship. The driving motivation behind the venture was the transferral of traditional building conservation skills to local tradesmen to enable the repair of this and other historic buildings on the island. Fulfilling this ambition was not without its difficulties, although Maude cautiously concludes that the project has gone some way towards improving buildings conservation practice in the Caribbean.

In ‘Urban Regeneration and the Management of Change: Liverpool and the Historic Urban Landscape’, Dennis Rodwell describes the recent initiatives established to conserve and regenerate the historic central and waterfront areas of this exciting, re-emerging city. Rodwell considers both the good and the bad outcomes of recent conservation and regeneration programmes, including the government’s controversial ‘Pathfinder’ initiative, the City Council’s ‘Stop the Rot’ campaign to preserve historic buildings and the impact on the areas awarded UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 2004. It is a fascinating and complex discussion that leaves one with myriad questions concerning the correct way forward for this former maritime mercantile city.

Moving to the slightly less familiar region of Burana in Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia, to a structure built almost a thousand years ago and steeped in a remarkable history, Enrico Fodde describes the conservation of an eleventh-century fired brick mausoleum located on the northern part of the ancient Silk Road. He discusses the efforts of a team of conservation and archaeological professionals to preserve the structure of the mausoleum, in a project which included experimental laboratory analysis of both historic and repair materials. Conservation skills were again transferred to local workmen, and it is envisaged that the recommendations and practical methods adapted for the project will be utilized by conservators working in similar structures in the Middle East and Asia.

The papers in this issue of the Journal represent many different aspects of buildings conservation and heritage care. From the ethical complexities involved in the presentation of an eclectic collection of artefacts housed in a National Trust home in the UK, to the need to transfer conservation knowledge for the preservation of buildings in Kyrgyzstan and the Caribbean, each project presents its own unique problems and triumphs: solutions are sought and progress, and the levels of understanding reached then allow decisions to be made and conservation treatments to be undertaken.

The Listening Mirrors

A Conservation Approach to Concrete Repair Techniques

Alan Wright and Peter Kendall

Between the World Wars use of a concave profiled concrete surface (a sound mirror) to reflect sound waves was thought to be the answer to the early detection of aerial attack. Ultimately, this technology was superseded by radar and the experimental work on sound reflection and collection was abortive. As a result, the south and east coast of England is scattered with the remains of forgotten concrete structures. The only extant collection of these structures is at Greatstone in Kent, where three sound mirrors remain and have been listed as scheduled monuments. One of the largest projects funded by the Aggregate Levy Sustainability Fund and managed by English Heritage was concerned with stabilizing these structures and undertaking research into their repair.

This paper aims to outline the conservation approach to the project and to detail the concrete repair techniques trialled. It also highlights some pointers for the repair of twentieth-century concrete based on the advice of a master mason and a concrete repair contractor. Finally, the long-term monitoring that is in place for the carbonation inhibitors and cathodic protection systems that are installed on these structures are detailed.

Alan Wright BEng(Hons), Ceng, FIStructE, MICE, MCIOB

Alan Wright was employed by English Heritage as the overall project manager and structural engineer for the works.

Peter Kendall MA

Peter Kendall was the Inspector of Ancient Monuments responsible for the scheduled site and he was ably assisted by Tim Cromack, also of English Heritage.

Snowshill Manor

The Spirit of Place and the Visitor

Jonathan Howard

The significance of Snowshill Manor relates less to its pre-First World War architectural qualities or social history as a manor house than to the individualistic but important collection, arrangement and garden orchestrated between 1919 and 1951 by Charles Paget Wade. This paper considers how the realities of managing a historic building and collection open to the public, combined with the Trust’s changing views on the significance of Wade, have impacted on the buildings. It considers what influence the conservation of, and visitor access to, the 22,000-artefact collection have had,– and are continuing to exert, on the building fabric and context of this Cotswold manor house since the National Trust took ownership in 1951. It emphasizes how crucial it is for a body such as the National Trust to fully understand what makes a place significant and then commit to preserving these values before acquiring it. This paper only discusses the collection insofar as it has influenced changes to the building fabric Wade knew.

Jonathan Howard

Jonathan Howard completed his postgraduate degree in Historic Conservation at Oxford Brookes University while working as House Steward at Snowshill Manor. Subsequently he worked as the Building Research Assistant for the National Trust Building Department, and now is Heritage Adviser Conservation for the Otago/Southland regions for the New Zealand Historic Places Trust. He is currently writing a biography of Charles Paget Wade.

Queen’s Royal College, Port-of-Spain, Trinidad

Architectural Conservation in the Caribbean

Francis Maude

The Founder’s building at Queen’s Royal College, built between 1902 and 1904, has achieved iconic status as one of Trinidad’s most important seats of learning. The building’s deteriorating condition has prompted the Trinidadian Ministry of Works and Transport to fund the restoration of the building. The intention has been to use this project and the restoration of the President’s House nearby to increase the level of conservation skills both at a professional level and within the local construction industry. The design and construction of the building, and the local approach to project management and site supervision, have presented a number of problems which have meant that not all the project objectives have been met.

Francis Maude MA(Cantab), Dip Arch, RIBA, AABC

Francis Maude is a Senior Associate with Donald Insall Associates. He trained at Cambridge University and the Canterbury School of Architecture before joining Donald Insall Associates in 1991. He was a SPAB scholar in 1994.

Fired Brick Conservation in the Kyrgyz Silk Roads

The Case of Burana’s Mausoleum 4

Enrico Fodde

The paper outlines the materials and methods employed for the conservation of the Mausoleum 4, an excavated fired brick structure dating from the eleventh century. The ruin is located in Burana (upper Chuy valley, Kyrgyzstan), an archaeological site that played a relevant role in the development of the northern stretch of the central Asian Silk Roads. The paper discusses the experimental laboratory analyses carried out to test both historic and repair materials. It also discusses the information provided by the direct study of wall structures. A description is also given of how local experts were trained in conservation activities such as: damage assessment, analytic investigation of materials, craftsmanship, traditional skills, and intervention recording. The conservation of Burana’s heritage was part of a wider UNESCO/Japan Trust Fund project named ‘Preservation of Silk Roads Sites in the Upper Chuy Valley in Kyrgyzstan: Navikat (Krasnaya Rechka), Suyab (Ak Beshim) and Balasagyn (Burana)’. The recommendations and practical methods explained here could be of use for those conservators working in similar projects in the Middle East or Asia.

Enrico Fodde MA, PhD

Enrico Fodde is Lecturer at the BRE Centre for Innovative Construction Materials, Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, University of Bath (UK). He was formerly International Project Director of Moenjodaro (World Heritage Site, Pakistan), consultant to the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (UAE), and Field Director for the various UNESCO projects.

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