Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Summary
The gauged work of this period, particularly during the second half of
the nineteenth century, was greatly influenced by advances in technology.
Developments in the washing and screening of brickearth and clay led to the
manufacture of cleaner-bodied rubbers, fired in improved and more controll-
able kilns, and distributed to a wider market, via the national rail network. The
introduction of the twisted steel wire blade for cutting rubbers within profiled
cutting boxes increased both accuracy and speed. A wider range of products
to fix and support the finished gauged work than was previously available led
to new architectural uses. The fashion for gauged enrichments returned in a
highly adventurous manner due to various architectural revivalist styles that
benefited from the national desire to educate building craftsmen to undertake
handcrafted work of the best quality.
Case Study: 'Weavers House', New Wanstead,
London, E11
The Building Surveyor's Perspective
By Chris Billson FRICS, Chartered Building Surveyor
I am a Chartered Building Surveyor with over forty years of experience of work-
ing on existing buildings. In 1997 I was appointed by one of the oldest of the
City Livery Companies to prepare and implement a programme of restoration
and repair to one of their Grade II listed Almshouses, Weavers House, in East
London. The statutory listing for Weavers House is Grade II. It records that
Joseph Jennings built it in 1859 in a Jacobean style with a two storey central
block and symmetrical flanking wings. It goes on to describe that the building
was constructed in yellow stock bricks with painted stone dressings; all under a
slate roof. Although this description does not go into finer points of detail, the
arches over many of the windows and doors are constructed of 'Malm Cutters'.
These were made from a special type of brick earth and considered to be the
'rubbers' of the London Stock brick range.
One area of repair identified as being necessary was to dismantle and rebuild
a segmental gauged arch over a window built in these Malm cutters. The main
contractor appointed to carry out the overall programme had been assured
by his sub-contractor that they possessed the knowledge, skills and experi-
ence of traditionally constructed brickwork including the use of non-hydraulic
and hydraulic lime mortars and the execution of gauged brickwork. I was also
assured that they were capable of following my instructions for the reconstruc-
tion of this arch. Unfortunately they were not and the arch when rebuilt was
 
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