THE terrible demise of the Crooked House pub at Himley in the Black Country—distressingly alight, fire hollowed walls, flattened dune of bricks and all in fewer than 48 hours—is a reminder of the vulnerability of all kinds of old buildings. They are at risk of wear and tear, abandonment, unsuitable development and, sometimes, even ruthless intent. What was once a plain Georgian farmhouse was made famous by its chance location. Situated partly on top of coal deposits owned by the Earl of Dudley, the peculiar skewing of its structure was the result of the seams underneath being mined in the 19th century. Many have called for a compulsory brick-for-brick reinstatement of this architectural one-off and all its imperfections, much like the rebuilding of Charrington Brewery’s 1920s Carlton Tavern in Kilburn, London, which was unlawfully demolished in 2015 by developers, then reassembled in replica style using archived photographs and interior details documented by Historic England.
The potential for the accurate rehabilitation of any blaze-damaged or wrecked structure is dependent on its significance and community value, formal heritage status and statutory protections, documentary evidence, insurance and funding. However, not all agree with the principle of rebuilding and conservation philosophy has changed. Where the National Trust pursued the reinstatement— some might say pastiche—of Uppark House in West Sussex following a fire in 1989, they are now engaged in the preservation of the skeletal Clandon Park in Surrey as a ruin, an approach that avoids the resurrection of what could be deemed an aesthetic phoney.
Denne historien er fra September 06, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra September 06, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Happiness in small things
Putting life into perspective and forces of nature in farming
Colour vision
In an eye-baffling arrangement of geometric shapes, a sinister-looking clown and a little girl, Test Card F is one of television’s most enduring images, says Rob Crossan
'Without fever there is no creation'
Three of the top 10 operas performed worldwide are by the emotionally volatile Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, who died a century ago. Henrietta Bredin explains how his colourful life influenced his melodramatic plot lines
The colour revolution
Toxic, dull or fast-fading pigments had long made it tricky for artists to paint verdant scenes, but the 19th century ushered in a viridescent explosion of waterlili
Bullace for you
The distinction between plums, damsons and bullaces is sweetly subtle, boiling down to flavour and aesthetics, but don’t eat the stones, warns John Wright
Lights, camera, action!
Three remarkable country houses, two of which have links to the film industry, the other the setting for a top-class croquet tournament, are anything but ordinary
I was on fire for you, where did you go?
In Iceland, a land with no monks or monkeys, our correspondent attempts to master the art of fishing light’ for Salmo salar, by stroking the creases and dimples of the Midfjardara river like the features of a loved one
Bravery bevond belief
A teenager on his gap year who saved a boy and his father from being savaged by a crocodile is one of a host of heroic acts celebrated in a book to mark the 250th anniversary of the Royal Humane Society, says its author Rupert Uloth
Let's get to the bottom of this
Discovering a well on your property can be viewed as a blessing or a curse, but all's well that ends well, says Deborah Nicholls-Lee, as she examines the benefits of a personal water supply
Sing on, sweet bird
An essential component of our emotional relationship with the landscape, the mellifluous song of a thrush shapes the very foundation of human happiness, notes Mark Cocker, as he takes a closer look at this diverse family of birds