Context 153 - March 2018

C O N T E X T 1 5 3 : M A R C H 2 0 1 8 11 reach with two contrasting papers on the design and construction of domes, one dating back to the Ottoman period in the Kasbah of Algiers and the thin brick dome, 93 feet in diameter, constructed in 1909 for the Cathedral of St John the Divine, Harlem, NewYork. Of more specific interest to UK readers of Context may be a paper by Edwin Trout of the Concrete Society concerning concrete air raid shelters (1935 to 1941), as a study of the British cement industry’s influence on public policy. The author notes that this was an example of the combination of commercial self-interest with an impressive contribution to the collective war effort. The Cement and Concrete Association was formed in 1935 and quickly identified air raid precautions as a matter of national importance as the Abyssinian Crisis and the Spanish Civil War unfolded. Foreign precedents were examined, designs developed and technical training devised for the authorities charged with their installation. As a consequence, Britain was better prepared in 1940 for the Blitz than would otherwise have been the case. The paper, illuminated by some well- chosen contemporary illustrations, will be informative to those unfamiliar with these heritage assets and wishing to place their significance in context. Other articles in this eclectic edition include the path of contractors in Belgium leading to becoming professional building practitioners for the period 1870 to 1960; the dawn of the reinforced concrete system in Mexico from 1903 to 1964; and the legacy of Catalan construction on the impressive Pinell de Brai cooperative wine cellars, designed by Cèsar Martinelli (1918–1927) and holding 2.5 million litres of wine. In the most recent issue of The Victorian (No 56, November 2017), Anthony Quiney celebrates the career of John Loughborough Pearson on the bi-centenary of his birth. The author remarks that the world was not ready for him as ‘High’ Anglicanism and the churches he eventually designed for the movement did not yet exist. Pearson was a diffident character who shunned publicity and declined to engage in the heated controversies that surrounded his restorations. His reserve that may have stemmed from his lack of formal education. Fortunately, an appreciation of Pearson’s work can be gained from the splendid Historic England research report ‘The church and chapel interiors of John Loughborough Pearson: a selective assessment of significance’ by Clare Howard and Simon Taylor (Research Report Series No 26, 2016). It can be downloaded for free from the Historic England website, but be warned it is 15.4MB and 420 pages long. Elsewhere in the issue are examinations of two oddities. Kathryn Ferry looks at the odd story of railway carriage bungalows (and illustrates an example of these curious structures at Shoreham in Sussex), and deals with issues of their survival and preservation. Richard Hill considers the peculiar rebirth of the giant gas holders just north of Kings Cross, although this amounts to building new apartment blocks with the gasholder frames as a sort of freestanding filigree. Worthy of note from the October issue of Natural Stone Specialist are the references to the Stone Heritage Register, published last May by the Stone Federation’s Heritage Group and listing the specialties of its members. A lengthy illustrated feature deals with stone cleaning analysis, including in situ, non-invasive microscopy as a basis for on-the-spot stone analysis. The November issue provided a useful outline summary of the Building Limes Forum’s ‘Rediscovering traditional mortars’ conference, which had been transported to Trondheim in Norway, and included a debate about the past failures and current approaches to mortars used on Nidaros Cathedral. The cathedral has been trying to replicate medieval mortars since 2000. Their experience encapsulated all that the conference set out to promote, that is, that by using modern research methods, scientific knowledge and an understanding of traditional methods, historic mortars can be replicated far more authentically than by using any modern materials. Finally, a brief reminder that the excellent intermittent Newsletter of SAVE Britain’s Heritage is published online (where all recent issues can be located). The winter 2017 issue can be viewed at www.savebritainsheritage. org/campaigns/newsletters. Bob Kindred MBE