14 On 26 April 1993 the "impeccable restoration and redecoration of an important 18th century assembly room of associated accommodation" was awarded a Europa Nostra Diploma of Merit. The award was presented to Councillor Derek Green, Mayor of Newark, by Professor Charles Dunbar Naismith. The presentation ceremony was the climax of a lengthy, and at times controversial, programme of redevelopment and renovation of the whole of the Town Hall complex. Those who now visit Newark Town Hall and see the Ballroom are invariably overwhelmed by its great beauty and the excellence of the restoration of its interior. However, there are those locally who would argue that the 'enabling development' which facilitated the restoration was too high a price to pay. The story of the redevelopment of part of the Town Hall and the restoration/conservation work which it allowed is an illustration of one way in which the constraints on the public purse can be overcome to achieve a high-quality restoration. It forms an interesting case study which will be of relevance to others CASE STUDY Philip Grover on the restoration of Georgian interior decoration at the Ballroom, Newark Town Hall facing similar problems with major listed buildings. CREATION OF A MASTERPIECE Newark Town Hall was built between 1774 and 1776 to the designs of the respected provincial architect John Carr of York. Influenced by Lord Burlington, Carr was a devotee of Palladianism and perhaps one of the best known and prolific designers of his day. The circumstances of John Carr's appointment by the Newark Corporation are unknown, but his several local contacts and wide reputation were clearly key factors. Whatever the circumstances, his selection as architect was an inspired one which has left Newark with arguably one of the finest Georgian town halls in the country. With its seven-bay facade and central three-bay loggia, with slim Doric columns rising through both upper storeys, the Town Hall is the grandest Georgian building in Newark and forms the striking centrepiece to the magnificent Market Square. Carr's ingenious T-shaped plan incorporated a colonnaded butchers' market or shambles aligned at right angles to the main facade. Inside, above the market, is the fine Ballroom/ Assembly Room with two pairs of giant Corinthian columns, screening off apses "in the Robert Adam manner". The ceiling of the Ballroom is most impressive, described by Pevsner as Carr's version of Adam's ceiling in the old library at Harewood. Costing over £17,000 to complete in 1776, the Town Hall has served as a meeting place and centre of civic pride until the present day. DECLINE AND REBIRTH By the 1970s the building and its interiors had deteriorated markedly. The soft white Mansfield stone facade had become badly eroded and had suffered CONTEXT 40
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