10 C O N T E X T 1 7 2 : J U N E 2 0 2 2 In the case Heaton observed, the carpentry had allowed the roof to spread outwards, threatening the imminent collapse of the building. This demonstrates that, contrary to received engineering history, the designer (or carpenter) of this early-19th-century roof truss did not understand statics. Although assumed to be experienced and competent, they were copying a structural detail they had seen elsewhere, possibly in a book, (that is, fashion) without understanding how it worked, which suggests also not knowing how the traditional forms actually worked. Also of note is an article by Edwin AR Trout about the Orchestrelle Factory, Benlow Works, in Hayes, Middlesex, a Grade II listed building at risk. The name was closely associated with the fashion of the day for mechanised music (the pianola), and was both the name of a musical instrument and its manufacturer. The four-storey building was designed in 1909 for the Aeolian Organ and Music Company by Walter Cave, with distinctive fullheight Diocletian windows. It was constructed in a material new at the time, Stuart’s Granolithic Stone, a form of reinforced concrete. A possible reuse is being explored, but the future of this significant building, described at the time of its construction as ‘one of the most important undertakings in reinforced concrete construction erected in this country… A noteworthy example of the practical use of reinforced concrete for factory construction’ is not yet secured. SPAB Magazine The SPAB Magazine (Spring 2022) is devoted principally to celebrating the fifth anniversary of SPAB Ireland, with articles on the initiatives of Dublin’s department of housing, local government and heritage on climate action; the SPAB Ireland campaign in support of vernacular architecture, with awareness-raising and championing better standards of conservation (including articles by Barry O’Reilly on the surviving folk tradition, and Sinéad Scullion on the mud and thatch revival); and a short history by outgoing SPAB Ireland chair Tríona Byrne of the history of, and legislation for, heritage protection, and the groups supporting it. Construction History Construction History (Vol 36, No 2, 2021) presents its usual international outlook. Two papers may be of particular interest.We tend to think of the conservation of buildings as completed without necessarily thinking about how they were originally assembled. A paper by Stefan M Holzer examines the role of the temporary works needed for medieval construction through to the early industrial period, with particular reference to methods of scaffolding, the use of cranes, and the materials and structures that were in operation on these early sites. Holzer highlights the close interdependencies between scaffolding, lifting machines and material types on the historic construction site.When in the middle ages cranes played a subordinate role, most of the transport of building materials had to be by carriers, who required convenient sound and stable scaffolding (mostly pole scaffolding) to serve the masons just in time. The progress in lifting machinery, notably from the late 14th century onwards, alleviated the pressure on scaffolds, and may have permitted the use of lighter or more basic scaffolding, while big ashlar blocks were assembled directly from the cranes. The development of robust rotative cranes spurred this development, and the rediscovery of the Vitruvian gin pole had the same effect. The second paper, by Keith Parry, deals with the repair and maintenance of the wooden bridge over the Thames at Marlow between 1620 and 1820. The bridge was set on a series of wooden piles grouped in ranges, linked together by wooden joints. It was typical of many bridges spanning the Thames between Reading and London. Rents from the Bridge Estate funded the repairs and two bridgemasters recorded their income and expenditure over two centuries. This permits analysis of records that show that the cycles of bridge closure of repair and replacement by a ferry averaged 11 years. Also of note in this issue are articles about the construction of the city wall at Pompeii; brickmaking production in medieval Novgorod; a history of early reinforced concrete in modern Shanghai (1890–1914); and the spreading regional development of the railway system in São Paulo, Brazil. Bob Kindred MBE
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