Nationally important Wiltshire heritage project reaches halfway point
Submitted by vicky on Monday, 16 December 2002 Page Views: 790
Discoveries
A total of 52 ceramic pots - all between 3,000 and 4,000 years old - have already been conserved. Work on the remaining 53 pots is expected to be finished by April 2004.
Many of the pots were discovered by three of the most celebrated pioneers of archaeology - Sir Richard Colt Hoare, owner of the Stourhead estate, his colleague, William Cunnington, and General Augustus Henry Lane-Fox Pitt-Rivers, one of the leading archaeologists and anthropologists of the Victorian age.
The historic vessels form part of the Bronze Age ceramics collections at the Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum (in Salisbury) and Wiltshire Heritage Museum (in Devizes).
Resource: The Council for Museums, Archives and Libraries (a Government body) has designated the museum collections that house the vessels as being of national historic importance.
The two museums and Wiltshire County Council are working in partnership to conserve these important pieces of our national heritage.
The Bronze Age artefacts have become increasingly fragile in recent years and would have suffered irreparable damage without the efforts of conservators from the county council.
Two conservators and a sub-contractor are currently working full-time on the project at the county council's conservation centre in Salisbury.
The conservation operation is time-consuming and requires meticulous skill - for example, a large vessel with cement to remove can take up to 230 hours to conserve.
Techniques include rebuilding the pots using sympathetic modern materials and providing specialist packing for each vessel.
Restoration by previous generations used a bizarre combination of materials, including cement, terracotta plant pots, and bicycle spokes.
Some of these Victorian restorations are also seen as being of historic interest, and conservators will attempt to save elements of them. In some cases, the names of the original restorers have been inscribed in the cement bases.
Jane Scott, Wiltshire County Council's cabinet member for children, education and libraries, said: "I am delighted with the progress being made towards completing this nationally important project.
"These fine examples of Bronze Age ceramics form a fascinating part of Wiltshire's, and Britain's, history - and that is why it is so pleasing that they will remain on public display."
Wiltshire County Council's conservation and museums manager, Louisa Burden, said: "The work has proved to be challenging - trying to remove very hard Victorian cement from ceramic that resembles a crumbly biscuit is not an easy task.
"The project aims to give members of the public and researchers access to these historically important objects. If they had not been conserved that would not have been possible, as the pots are very fragile.
"Work is progressing well and the newly conserved pots are already back on display at both museums. The conservators working on the project are doing a fantastic job."
The conservation work will cost a total of nearly £200,000, almost £150,000 of which is being provided by the Heritage Lottery Fund.
Wiltshire County Council, the South West Museums, Libraries and Archives Agency and the two museums have also contributed funding for the project. International support has been provided in the form of funding from the L.J. Skaggs and Mary C. Skaggs Foundation, USA.
Source: Wiltshire County Council press release, December 2002
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