The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings

In this edition of Cornerstone

Secretary’s Notes Farewell Civic Trust – but this is not likely to be the only drastic change in the heritage and conservation landscape.

News BriefingWhile Westminster turmoil and the dire economy hog the headlines, Heathrow and Stansted – huge twin threats to historic buildings and settings – should not be overlooked; possible Church of England threat to the future of its vital Church Buildings Council; sell-offs of important church items to raise money for repairs ruled out by senior Church court; accreditation schemes for work on historic buildings surge ever forward.

Letters Accreditation again; is lime green?; HIPs hopeless; war ruins ruined. James Innerdale’s cartoon, page 8; Carbon Corner, page 9.

 

Casework SPAB asked to advise on Rochester Castle; fine house in Leek seeks careful owner; Norfolk Broads architecture may be saved from the sea; Rhosson Uchaf – how not to treat an old building; how to source correct stone in Wiltshire?

 

COVER STORY: SALTWOOD AFTER ALANIt is one of Britain’s most
extensive but least known medieval castles. Home to Kenneth Clark and Alan Clark, it has now been the responsibilty of Alan’s widow Jane for a decade. Last year a paper implied that the Grade I listed Scheduled Ancient Monument was crumbling.  Jane Clark invites ‘Cornerstone’ to hear her side of the story. By Robin Stummer

 

Ravilious Revealed Not only was he one of the finest documentary photographers in Britain, but James Ravilious also managed to create an invaluable archive of images of unrestored, and still-in-use, traditional West Country buildings.
Ten years on from his death, we salute his work of the 1970s, 80s and 90s.

Stroll into the past The early SPAB was keen on engaging with old buildings close up, on foot, and seeing them in the context of their settings. Architectural  historian and writer Jon Cannon sets out his own manifesto for understanding ancient structures by close study of their surroundings – and forgetting the car.

SITE SEEN and TO BE SEEN SPAB Technical Secretary Douglas Kent reports on how he found his dream ancient building, and started to investigate its past; inside a Jacobean solicitor’s mansion in Devon, before repairs; the Art Nouveau glories of Holy Trinity, Chelsea, in focus, by David Martin; old photographs help understand the repair history of Chilham Castle, says Archie Walls; Tudor House, Southampton’s gem of a museum, has had another cash windfall, allowing another stage of repair to start; a relic of Derbyshire’s industrial past is brought back to life by Philip Heath; and an Edwardian tree house from an Essex mansion proves to be a unique repair project for David Leviatin.

 

Timber framing Douglas Kent’s Technical Q&A offers an overview.

BACK TO THE BATTLE St Petrock’s Church, Parracombe, north Devon – an old SPAB case revisited by John Bucknall and Matthew Slocombe.

 

NEW BOOKS Economics and heritage, a feisty mix; Morris homage.

 

Architecture in Art The night a palazzo in Rome went wild – and why.

For advertising in Cornerstone please contact: