Two Fellows have passed away recently: William Young Carman, who died on 9 July 2003, and Mary White Edmonds. Lisa Elliott would be grateful for any information on Mary Edmonds’s next of kin so that condolences can be sent.
Richard Sharpe writes to say that FSAs were conspicuous in recent elections to the British Academy. Election to the British Academy is in recognition of high scholarly distinction in some branch of the humanities or social sciences. Among those elected as Fellows on 3 July were Andrew Burnett, FSA, Keeper of Coins and Medals at the British Museum; John Curtis, FSA, Keeper in the Department of the Ancient Near East at the British Museum; David Mattingly, FSA, Professor of Roman Archaeology at the University of Leicester, and Richard Sharpe himself, Professor in the Faculty of Modern History at the University of Oxford. Paul Harvey, FSA, Professor Emeritus of Medieval History at the University of Durham, was also elected a Senior Fellow. Richard points out that five new FBAs is a good score, and better than any university, with Oxford and the LSE only managing four new Fellows each.
Richard is also one of several correspondents who have asked when the Society will publish an up-to-date list of Fellows. Lisa Elliott reports that the hold up is caused by the failure of so many Fellows to complete and send back the database entry form that was sent out earlier this year. Lisa requests that Fellows complete and return their forms, to confirm or update their details. If anybody has lost their form, Lisa would be happy to supply a replacement.
Consultation on protection for the historic environment
The Department of Culture, Media and Sport has launched its consultation document on updating and improving the listing and scheduling regime. Key proposals are:
ï· the creation of a single list and a single consents process embracing archaeology, buildings, parks and gardens, battlefields and World Heritage Sites
ï· statements of significance for all listed items, perhaps with an indication of what works would and would not require consent
ï· comprehensive information for owners of listed property to help them appreciate and maintain their property
ï· management agreements as an alternative to consent for owners of larger estates, with the provision for joint agreements covering the natural and the historic environments
ï· encouragement for the development of local and regional historic environment strategies.
DCMS plans a series of regional workshops over the next three months to explain the new proposals and encourage debate. Details will be given in Salon as soon as they are available. In the meantime, copies of the document, entitled Protecting our historic environment: making the system work better, are available from Eve Trueman at DCMS, 2 Cockspur Street, London SW1Y 5DH, tel: 020 7211 6200. Copies can also be downloaded from the DCMS website. Comments on the consultation document are required by 31 October 2003.
Following the launch of the DCMS consultation, Planning Minister Keith Hill announced that the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) would ‘defer consultation on a new Planning Policy Statement on the historic environment to replace PPGs 15 and 16 until we can take account of the response to the DCMS consultation paper’.
He added that: ‘The ODPM is closely involved in the review of the designation system being undertaken by DCMS. I think it’s good sense to hold off on our review until we see what comes out of the DCMS paper. There’s no point in having a planning regime which is out of kilter with the system for protecting historic assets’.
Instead, consultation on a new PPS to replace PPGs 15 and 16 will now take place in spring 2004, following publication of the DCMS White Paper.
Historic environment records: benchmarks for good practice
In a busy week for new initiatives, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport has also published a consultation paper on Historic Environment Records: benchmarks for good practice. The document seeks views from stakeholder organizations on a series of proposals for developing Sites and Monuments Records into more broadly based Historic Environment Records.
The proposals are designed to support an improved and streamlined land-use planning system by providing the high-quality records that planners and archaeologists can use to protect and manage the historic environment. At the same time they reflect a desire to encourage others to use the riches currently held in Sites and Monuments Records and to make them available in an accessible form to professionals, schools and colleges and the wider public.
Copies of the consultation document are available from Eve Trueman at DCMS, 2 Cockspur Street, London SW1 Y 5DH, tel: 020 7211 6200. A pdf version can be downloaded from the DCMS website. Comments on the consultation document are required by 31 October 2003.
New guidance on civic heritage
English Heritage has identified that almost 17 per cent of the Grade I and II* listed buildings at risk of loss from neglect and decay are owned by central and local government. Reorganization and financial constraints mean that many architecturally and historically significant local landmarks ‘ such as former town halls, swimming pools, libraries and assembly rooms ‘ are now redundant.
To help local authorities secure the future of these local landmarks, English Heritage has launched a new publication containing guidance on Managing Local Authority Heritage Assets, endorsed by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. The guidance is aimed at key decision-makers responsible for the funding and care of council-owned heritage. This includes everything from town halls, archaeological remains and listed buildings to conservation areas, historic landscapes, cemeteries and battlefields.
It champions effective high-quality management and shows the benefits of taking a positive, strategic approach to managing the civic heritage. Mary King, the English Heritage director in charge of Buildings at Risk, said: ‘Buildings like these are much-loved landmarks that make a crucial contribution to our local sense of place. Historic swimming baths, schools, libraries and public parks throughout the country help to enhance the quality of everyone’s lives and have formed the backdrop for many people’s best experiences and happiest memories.’
Further information can be found on the English Heritage website under Policy > Local and Regional Government > Managing Local Authority Heritage Assets.
Wanted! Local authority heroes to champion our heritage
In a separate initiative, English Heritage has launched a campaign to find local authority heritage champions across the country. The initiative, backed by both the Office for the Deputy Prime Minister and the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, aims to ensure that heritage plays a key role across all aspects of local government, from urban regeneration to education to tourism. English Heritage is calling on all local authorities to nominate ‘heroes’ who will drive heritage high up their council agendas.
Backing the campaign, Heritage Minister Andrew McIntosh said: ‘Local authorities have a complex role managing the historic assets in their care ‘ custodian, regulator, grant-giver and rescuer of last resort. This is why we have asked them to appoint Historic Environment Champions. Our built heritage can be a catalyst for regeneration, learning, community cohesion and economic development. With English Heritage’s help, I hope all local authorities will seize the real opportunities that championing it can bring.’
Heritage champions should ideally be councillors, preferably portfolio holders, or senior officers with excellent communication skills, good contacts across different sectors of the community and the ability to promote the value of the historic environment to a wide range of audiences. English Heritage is developing a comprehensive package of training and support to encourage, empower and develop networks for these key figures.
98 new entries on the Buildings at Risk Register
English Heritage has launched the 2003 edition of its Buildings at Risk Register. This year 114 entries have been successfully taken off the Register but 98 outstanding historic buildings were added to a list of 1,373 Grade I and II* heritage assets at risk from decay and neglect.
At the launch of the 2003 Buildings at Risk Register, Simon Thurley, Chief Executive of English Heritage, said: ‘Though we have battled to secure the future of more than one in four of the buildings first placed on the Register in 1999, and [have] given over ’27 million since that time, there remains a core of nationally important historic assets that English Heritage simply has no resources to save. We offered nearly ‘5 million in grant aid during [the] last year, which amounts to just over 1 per cent of the ‘400 million needed to repair all the buildings on the Register, considerably less than inflation. If more heritage resources are not made available, many of the nation’s most important and vulnerable architectural icons will pass the point of no return.’
Further information on the database can be found on the English Heritage website under News > Restoration ‘ New BBC Series.
Online guide to funds for restoring historic buildings
The Architectural Heritage Fund has launched its popular guide to Funds for historic buildings on the web. The site (created with the support of English Heritage and Cadw) provides a free and easily accessible source of information for all those with an interest in saving historic buildings, especially voluntary organizations, local authorities and public bodies. The site has details of more than 140 sources of funding to help restore historic buildings in England and Wales, ranging from Government agencies through to charitable trusts and regional and European funds.
Restoration ‘ coming to a screen near you
The launch of the AHF funding guide is timely in view of the imminent screening of Restoration ‘ to be broadcast every Friday night for the next ten weeks, starting on 8 August at 9pm.
Comedian Griff Rhys Jones will front the programme, giving viewers the chance to rescue one of thirty significant buildings at risk across the UK. Each of the thirty buildings has its own celebrity advocate who will urge viewers to vote for their chosen building to be restored. Conservation architect Ptolemy Dean and historic buildings surveyor Marianne Suhr will explore the history and construction of each building, helping to recreate its history. Restoration also draws on the memories and knowledge of local residents, owners and conservation groups who value these buildings and are fighting to preserve them.
At the end of each programme, viewers will be asked to cast their vote for the building they want to be saved. The finale of the series, timed to coincide with the National Heritage Open Days in September (see www.heritageopendays.org.uk), will reveal the results of a nationwide vote to decide which building will be restored.
Heavy lobbying can be expected from groups involved with buildings featured in the programme. One of the first off the mark is the Arkwright Society who hope to win the ‘3-million Restoration prize so as to complete the restoration of the Cromford Mill site, one of the major historic and industrial archaeological sites in Britain and part of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site.
Arkwright portrait to be saved
The Arkwright Society is well used to campaigning, having just secured a grant of ‘777,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund towards the purchase of Joseph Wright’s 1790 portrait of the pioneering industrialist, Richard Arkwright junior, with his wife Mary and daughter Anne. A further grant of ‘50,000 has come from the National Art Collections Fund, leaving the Derwent Valley Mills Partnership with a fundraising target of ‘123,000.
Currently the portrait can be seen at Tate Britain in London while the remaining fundraising takes place. If that campaign is successful, the portrait will be put on permanent display at Derby Museum and Art Gallery, where it will be fully accessible to the public free of charge. Wright was born and died in Derby and spent the majority of his working life in the city. Appropriately, Derby Museum and Art Gallery holds the world’s largest public collection of his paintings and drawings, and acts as a study centre for the artist.
There are also strong connections between the East Midlands and the artist’s subject, Richard Arkwright junior. The landscape and history of Derbyshire have been shaped by the development of the textile industry and the impact of the Arkwright family’s business activities. To help people learn more about this, the painting will be used as the focus of a new educational programme drawing attention to the monuments of the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site, and the industrial heritage of the area.
Goodison Review ‘ saving art for the nation
Acquiring works like the Arkwright portrait could become easier in the future, if the Government decides to give tax relief on monies donated to help save important works of art that might otherwise be sold abroad.
A review looking into how Government can support regional and national museums more effectively has just been launched by Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Paul Boateng. Sir Nicholas Goodison, who was until recently Chairman of the National Art Collections Fund, has been appointed to lead the review. As a first step, a consultation paper has been published examining the existing taxation and funding arrangements that affect the ability of museums and galleries to acquire and display works of art and culture, and proposes a number of options for reform. Comments on the proposals in the consultation document are invited by 1 October 2003. The consultation document, Saving Art for the Nation, can be downloaded from the Treasury website.
Cultural treasures accepted in lieu of inheritance tax
Statues from Castle Howard, a sculpture by Barbara Hepworth and a seventeenth-century lady’s bodice are among a list of important works of art recently accepted by the Government in lieu of tax bills of more than ‘4 million. Announcing the list, Arts Minister Estelle Morris said: ‘The Acceptance in Lieu Scheme helps to enrich public collections by providing important items at no cost to the museums’. Full details are available on the DCMS website.
The objects that have been accepted include twenty-six, mostly antique, sculptures acquired by the 4th Earl of Carlisle, Lord Morpeth, on his Grand Tour during the eighteenth century and now displayed in-situ at the Grand Staircase, Grand Hall, and Classical Corridor, Castle Howard; The Dead Christ Supported by Mourning Angels by Liberale da Verona (c 1445’1527/9); an album of fifty-two architectural drawings by Lancelot Capability Brown, Henry Holland and Sir John Soane of Claremont House, Esher, the house that Robert Clive (of India) commissioned in 1769; an early seventeenth-century English embroidered lady’s bodice, said to have been made for Elizabeth, Countess of Shrewsbury, also known as Bess of Hardwick, with a pattern of roses, honeysuckle and grapes that appears to be based on two designs in Thomas Trevelyon’s two manuscript pattern books of 1608 and 1616.
Restoring Michelangelo’s David
Florentines have still not entirely forgiven the city authorities for moving their David into the Accademia in 1873, to protect it from pigeons and pollution. Now the statue is the subject of another controversy: whether to clean it in time for its 500th anniversary ‘ and if so, how. After ten years of study, two experts are locked in disagreement over the best methods of removing the statue’s coating of wax and accumulated grime. The Accademia’s Director, Franca Falletti, wants to use wet poultices to shift grime from deep within the pores of David’s Carrara marble, while restorer Agnese Parronchi wants an even more gentle approach, using only brushes to dust away the surface dirt. Meanwhile thirty-nine international experts have signed a petition saying that David should stay dirty, and not be touched, and an independent commission has been set up to consider all the options.
David was completed in 1504 and established Michelangelo’s reputation (at the age of 29) as the foremost sculptor of his age. Symbolizing the Republican aspirations of the city, and its brave but ultimately futile defiance of Medici, papal and imperial hegemony, the statue stood for almost 370 years in front of the Palazzo Vecchio, helping to transform the Piazza della Signoria into an outdoor art gallery full of heroic sculptures.
As for the current controversy, a good Florentine compromise looks likely: a light dusting will be employed now to clean the statue in time for the anniversary, and a thorough study of the surface will help experts learn how best to treat the marble at some future stage.
Garden folly based on Adam sketch
Colin Briden, an archaeologist working for the Landmark Trust, has identified a sketch by Robert Adam, called Capriccio in Ruins, as the inspiration for the design of a folly sitting on the edge of a gorge at Grewelthorpe, near Ripon, a Grade-I listed garden. The sketch is a fantasy based on the central vault of Hadrian’s Baths and two ruined temples that Adam drew on a visit to Rome. Briden says that the sketch is unmistakably the source of the folly, whose creation has traditionally been attributed to William Aislabie, who designed the Grewelthorpe gardens. The sketch can be seen at an exhibition called Roman Bob, which has just opened at the Sir John Soane Museum, while the folly is due to be restored as holiday accommodation, and is subject to a ‘140,000 appeal.
Previously unrecognized royal household account book
Fellows might have seen a story in the press last week revealing that a recipe for lasagne had been found at the British Museum, in the recipe book commissioned by King Richard II in 1390 called The Forme of Cury. The find was made by Professor Crompton and other organizers of a medieval festival to be held at Berkeley Castle in southern England later this month.
Now Berkeley Castle itself turns out to be a rich source of information on the lavish diet and housekeeping arrangements of a later court, that of King Edward IV. David Smith, FSA, Berkeley Castle Archivist, reports that he has discovered a previously unrecognised royal household account book for 1474/5 among the Berkeley Castle muniments. David says that: ‘the book’s existence was previously known, but it was thought to relate to the Berkeley family. The only published catalogue of the Berkeley Castle muniments (1892) describes the volume as ‘Old daily accounts, temp Henry VIII’. It has defied identification for so long partly because the first and last leaves are lacking.
‘The book comprises three sections. The first contains daily accounts of expenses of feeding and providing for the court and household for the six months from Saturday 1 October 1474 to Wednesday 22 March 1475. There is a similar journal in the Public Record Office (E101/412/5) written by the same scribe, which ends on the day before the Berkeley volume starts. The next section deals with costs by department of the household: pantry, buttery, wardrobe, kitchen, poultry, scullery, saucery, hall and stable. The third section lists those on the Household payroll: 355 men are named, starting with Robert Wynkefield, Controller of the Household, and John Elrington, newly promoted to be Treasurer of the Household. The lowest paid got 4d per day.
‘Here are some translated entries as examples of the type of information in the accounts: To Henry Barfote for bringing wax and spices from London to Coventry and thence to Kenilworth, 6s 6d; To Richard Blacwelle for carrying the king’s bed from London to Hertford 3s 4d; For 4 loads of rushes for the Hall 17s 4d (carpets were not introduced until much later).
‘The lavish diet of the court can be judged from the accounts of the poultry department, which supplied for the king’s table not just chickens but also plovers, herons, cranes, woodcock, peacocks and pheasants.
‘Much is known about how the royal household of Edward IV was supposed to work. Just before this volume was written the king became concerned about excessive costs. Bills from suppliers were often paid months or even years late and this led to unrest. In 1471’2 the king drew up orders to reduce expense and curb waste and embezzlement. Another set of orders was produced in 1478. Though these orders exist, as well as a draft text book on management of the household (the ‘Black Book’), very few actual accounts have survived. None of those contains all the three sections for the same year, as in the Berkeley volume.’
Fellows curious to know more should make a note in their diary to attend the Society’s weekly meeting on 27 November 2003, when David Smith will give a paper on the Berkeleys of Berkeley Castle.
Jane Geddes, FSA, writes to say that: ‘Fellows may be familiar with the St Albans Psalter through the monograph of the same name by Otto Paecht, Francis Wormald and C R Dodwell, published by the Warburg Institute in 1960. Though copiously illustrated, that monograph shows only black and white images. Now the entire Psalter can be seen in all its polychromatic glory on a newly launched website, at website. As well as details of all the illuminations, the website has transcriptions, translations, commentary and essays.
The St Albans Psalter was created in the early twelfth century by Abbot Geoffrey of St Albans for his beloved anchoress Christina of Markyate. It is famous for its 211 lively initials which illustrate scenes from the Psalms, its miniatures of the Life of Christ, and the Chanson of St Alexis, the earliest example of literature written in French. In subtle ways, these components reflect the interests of the recipient and patron, Christina and Geoffrey. Permission to reproduce the images is through the kind permission of the Congregation of St Godehard, Hildesheim, and the project was funded by the AHRB and Aberdeen University.
The Venetian picture collection of Bortolo della Nave
The next in the Wallace Collection’s series of seminars on the history of collecting will be led by Jeremy Wood, of the University of Nottingham, and will be concerned with the collection of the Venetian merchant Bartolomeo della Nave (better known as Bortolo) which was bought by James, 3rd Marquis and later Duke of Hamilton (1606’49), in 1638.
The aim is to expand and revise what has been known about the collection and its transfer to London, using a range of new documents, including an early Italian version of the inventory. Van Dyck visited della Nave in 1622, and he had an opportunity to study the paintings again after their arrival in London. The copies that he made, particularly in his Italian Sketchbook, throw light on his understanding of Venetian painting and the collection itself. The new documentation helps establish how Hamilton displayed the pictures at Wallingford House and Chelsea House in the period immediately before the Civil War.
The seminar takes place on Wednesday 24 September 2003, from 4.30pm to 6pm. Prior booking is essential. E-mail: [email protected].
100-hectare excavation at Heathrow
The site of Heathrow’s planned Terminal 5 building is the location for one of Britain’s largest ever excavations. Over 100 hectares in extent, the site has taken eighteen months to investigate and has revealed the way that the heavily forested landscape of the excavation is enabling archaeologists to look in detail at the development of a whole landscape over a period of 8,000 years, from the forested mesolithic landscape to the first permanent settlements of the Bronze Age, and the villages of the Iron Age and Roman era that died out at the end of the Roman era but were replaced by a new village in the twelfth century.
Tony Trueman, of Framework Archaeology, said field boundaries at the site had been dated to 2000 BC, and were much earlier than expected. ‘It shows that people were actually claiming ownership of land for the first time. Before this’, he said, ‘land was shared by the whole community, but this shows us social attitudes were changing and hierarchies were emerging much earlier than we first thought’. Finds from the site, which include a wooden bowl of Middle Bronze Age date (1500 to 1100 BC), are on display at the Museum of London.
Profile of the archaeological profession
The Institute of Field Archaeologists (IFA) and the Cultural Heritage National Training Organisation (CHNTO) have published a new report called Archaeology Labour Market Intelligence: Profiling the Profession 2002/03. The report includes information on the workforce profile, including diversity issues, training needs, skills shortages and skills gaps, occupations, salaries, qualifications and geographical differences, the profession’s growth potential, and estimates of archaeologist numbers working in the UK ‘ both paid and unpaid.
Kenneth Aitchison, Head of Training and Standards at the IFA, explained that the report was intended to make a contribution to business planning and growth in the archaeology profession, and to individual archaeologists in plotting their own career paths. Copies of the report can be downloaded from the IFA website.
IFA call for session proposals and/or paper titles
There is just time to respond to the IFA’s call for session proposals and/or paper titles for its 2004 conference, to be held at the University of Liverpool on 6 to 8 April 2004. Proposals should be sent to [email protected] by 1 August 2003.
Yangtze River dam floods 1,200 sites
The Art Newspaper, edited by Fellow Anna Somers Cocks, carries a report in this month’s edition highlighting the archaeological losses from the first stage of China’s massively ambitious Three Gorges Dam hydro-electric project. Nearly 1,200 sites of historical and archaeological importance along the Yangtze River are now underwater as the waters began rising in the huge 375-mile long reservoir created by the 185-metre high and 2-kilometre wide dam. Archaeological discoveries made during the salvage efforts have identified the area as one of the most culturally important in China. Unfortunately for the future of serious archaeological research in the region, it is all too little, too late. For the full story see www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=11215.
Iraq’s archaeological sites still being looted
The same newspaper carries eyewitness accounts of the ongoing looting of Iraq’s archaeological sites, which has largely been ignored by the international media. Access to the sites is difficult, but the first survey has been conducted by a team organized by the US National Geographic Society. For full details see www.theartnewspaper.com/news/article.asp?idart=11213.
Museums Australia seeks comment on draft policy
Museums Australia is seeking comment on its draft policy document containing guidelines for Australian Museums working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural heritage. The revised draft policy can be accessed at www.museumsaustralia.org.au/structure.htm.
Historic Environment Advisory Council for Scotland
Fellow Peter Burman, MBE, is one of twelve members appointed to the new Historic Environment Advisory Council for Scotland (HEACS), which is to provide Scottish Ministers with strategic advice on issues affecting the historic environment, including structures and places of historical, archaeological and architectural interest. The other members of HEACS are Elizabeth Burns, Neil Galbraith OBE, Mark Hopton, Martin Hulse, Ian Johnson, Finlay Lockie, Eleanor McAllister, Professor Charles McKean, Clare Meredith, Ross Noble and Andrew Wright OBE.
All change at British Archaeology
After nine years as Editor of the CBA’s British Archaeology magazine, Simon Denison is moving on at the end of July to pursue his career as a fine-art photographer. Mike Pitts, FSA, a widely experienced archaeologist, author, journalist and broadcaster, is to be Simon’s successor. Mike can be contacted at [email protected].
During Simon’s time as Editor, he has transformed British Archaeology into the highly praised magazine for which he received last year’s British Archaeological Award for journalism. Francis Pryor, FSA, President of the CBA, said: ‘Thanks to Simon’s professional editorship British Archaeology has become the best popular archaeological magazine in Britain. We now have a product that will be at home on the shelves of newsagents across the country.’
And hello to Current World Archaeology
Meanwhile Andrew Selkirk, FSA, has announced that he will be publishing a new magazine devoted to Current World Archaeology. This sister magazine to Current Archaeology will be launched in September and is to be published six times a year, alternating with Current Archaeology. The first issue will be given out free ‘ existing subscribers to Current Archaeology will receive one automatically ‘ others can register at www.archaeology.co.uk.
The Campaign for Real Ale has just published a national inventory of pub interiors of outstanding historic interest (further details from www.camra.org.uk). Compiled by Dr Geoff Brandwood, Chairman of the Victorian Society, the guide covers architectural gems such as the Dr Johnson, in Ilford, a virtually unaltered 1930s housing estate pub with almost all its original fittings, to such rare unspoiled country pubs as the Three Kings, Hanley Castle, Worcestershire, a Grade-II-listed pub that has been in the same family for 90 years. Change of ownership, says Geoff Brandwood, nearly always heralds destructive change, especially if the pub is acquired by a large commercial firm determined to stamp a corporate identity on the property.
Sadly, a national pub-crawl to visit every establishment in the inventory would only take 36 weeks at the rate of one pub a day. Geoff Brandwood optimistically hoped that his team would find at least 500 architecturally outstanding pubs for the inventory. In the end they found only 248 ‘ out of a total of 60,000 pubs in the country.
Countryside Agency, Head of Evidence and Analysis
Salary ‘49,000 to ‘55,000, closing date 6 August 2003
Leading a research team of fourteen, with responsibility for developing the Agency’s overall research strategy. Further information from TMP Worldwide Response Management on tel: 0800 056 3321 or from www.countryside.gov.uk quoting ref 28526.