On Saturday I visited the Darnall Crucible Steel Works which was organised by Ray Wilson as part of a SPAB visit. The site, where crucible steel was produced, is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument. I have put together a microsite here with more information and access to photo's and links.
Below is a tabblo photostory of the days visit. Click on the image to get a larger view.
Continuing my day out at Kings Manor
Once we had finished in the Chapter House Roofspace we walked back along a gulley section adjacent to the Chapter House Roof and I noticed this wonderful record of work welded onto the side of the Chapter House Roof. Lead sheet covering is a complex and difficult craft to encompass and I always think that it is one of the most beautiful roof coverings for old and contemporary buildings alike. It is great to see that the craft is still alive.
Over the weekend starting 19th May I will be at a Heritage Skills Weekend at Fountains Abbey in Yorkshire where one of the stalls will be showing some aspects of Lead Craftsmanship and also showing how young people can get involved in the craft. More later...
Images of lead roofs and lead work here
There is more information about the Chapter House and a larger photograph of the vaulting at my photoblog site here
There are more events organised by the SPAB Yorkshire Regional Group including visits to Kirkstall Abbey in May, Nostell Priory and Knedlington Old Hall in June, and Darnall Crucible Shops in September.
SPAB website is here
Conservation Courses at University of York Kings Manor
You can view all of my images of York Minster here
You can view all of my images of York here
To see the original Kings Manor Post click here
If you look at yesterday's post you can see the vaulting to the Chapter House at York Minster - the above photo is taken in the roof space directly above the vaulting. It is an incredible maze of medieval timbers which after a little careful study reveal an intelligent use of design to transfer the weight of the leaded roof to the octagonal side walls.
There is more information about the Chapter House and a larger photograph of the vaulting at my photoblog site here There are more events organised by the SPAB Yorkshire Regional Group including visits to Kirkstall Abbey in May, Nostell Priory and Knedlington Old Hall in June, and Darnall Crucible Shops in September.
SPAB website is here Conservation Courses at University of York Kings Manor You can view all of my images of York Minster here You can view all of my images of York here
To see the original Kings Manor Post click here
During the afternoon we had an option to go and see various parts of York Minster.
I opted to go to the Mason's Loft and Chapter House Roof. Before we got there we had the chance to see inside the magnificent Chapter House (which is open to the public). It is a remarkable piece of work, second only to Sainte Chapelle, Paris in it's breathtaking use of glass and light.
There is more information about the Chapter House and a larger photograph of the vaulting at my photoblog site here
There are more events organised by the SPAB Yorkshire Regional Group including visits to Kirkstall Abbey in May, Nostell Priory and Knedlington Old Hall in June, and Darnall Crucible Shops in September.
SPAB website is here
Conservation Courses at University of York Kings Manor
You can view all of my images of York Minster here
You can view all of my images of York here
More photo's from the event in the next post...
There are more events organised by the SPAB Yorkshire Regional Group including visits to Kirkstall Abbey in May, Nostell Priory and Knedlington Old Hall in June, and Darnall Crucible Shops in September.
SPAB website is here
Conservation Courses at University of York Kings Manor
You can view all of my images of York Minster here
You can view all of my images of York here
Note: Unfortunately I did not get all the names people and companies who attended the event. Members can be viewed at the York Consortium For Conservation and Craftsmanship, or if you took part, please drop me a line and I will gladly give an honourable mention to companies and people shown in the photos.
Handmade Brick Moulds courtesy of York Handmade
Over the weekend I went on a SPAB (Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings) regional event at Kings Manor in Yorkshire organised by Ray Wilson of the Spab Yorkshire Regional Group. It was a magnificent event which was well attended.
I am a member of SPAB and also lucky enough to be a freelance photographic contributer to their magazine Cornerstone.
I had a wonderful day meeting like minded people who have a love for our historic built environment.
The day was split into two halves. In the morning I visited the skills and crafts exhibition attended by members of the York Consortium For Conservation and Craftsmanship, and in the afternoon we had a tour of the Masons Loft, Chapter House Roof and East Front of York Minster. I took quite a few photographs and over the next few days I will introduce you to some of the things that I saw.
The first 'stall' I visited at the skills event was a brick making demonstration by York Handmade. As well as the quality of the handmade bricks, I thought it was fascinating to see both the original pattern moulds and the end result:-
Many people think that bricks are a recent material used for construction, but they have been used for thousands of years - in fact you can see evidence of Roman Bricks in the wall surrounding the ruins of Saint Mary's Abbey.
More photo's from the event tomorrow...
There are more events organised by the SPAB Yorkshire Regional Group including visits to Kirkstall Abbey in May, Nostell Priory and Knedlington Old Hall in June, and Darnall Crucible Shops in September.
SPAB website is here
Conservation Courses at University of York Kings Manor
You can view all of my images of York Minster here
You can view all of my images of York here
Note: Unfortunately I did not get all the names people and companies who attended the event. Members can be viewed at the York Consortium For Conservation and Craftsmanship, or if you took part, please drop me a line and I will gladly give an honourable mention to companies and people shown in the photos.
Got my shiny spanking new Cornerstone - magazine from the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings and low and behold I find a pic of my local 'The Old Boars Head' in Middleton.
The photo is in the SPAB archive which dates back to 1877 and is still used to this day to help save our heritage. Apparently The Old Boars Head was threatened with demolition in 1914 with plans for a town hall. Uum well I bet that was a difficult decision;). On a more serious note - it does seem blindingly obvious today that the C16th timber framed Old Boars Head public house should be saved from demolition - but it does happen, and SPAB is at the forefront of such activity often working in the background to help save our cherished (and sometimes not so cherished) architectural heritage.
I'll have an extra pint for SPAB tonight.
Talking about Georgian windows yesterday reminded me of one of my favourite projects which was to photograph the stained glass of St. Mary and St. Barlok Norbury in Derbyshire.
The project was commissioned by Cornerstone, the flagship magazine for the Society For The Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB). The glass is of international importance and has recently been conserved by specialist Stephen Clare. It consists of eight windows dating from about 1306 commissioned by the Fitzherbert family. The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings was founded by William Morris in 1877 to counteract the highly destructive 'restoration' of medieval buildings being practised by many Victorian architects. Today it is the largest, oldest and most technically expert national pressure group fighting to save old buildings from decay, demolition and damage.
You can view all my images of Norbury here
