Chapel Restoration Under Way

The beautiful Pre-Raphaelite paintings in the front of the altar (see right) were also de-mounted and they, too, will undergo painstaking cleaning before they are replaced when the sanctuary is restored.

With the fine art safely removed, it was then necessary to protect the remaining panelling and the altar itself, so a temporary inner wooden wall was constructed. Scaffolding could then be erected inside as well as out.

This will enable urgently needed repairs to the stonework of the great window by C. E. Kempe (left). Like all his work, it bears his famous ‘signature’ mark of a small wheatsheaf in the corner. If the work had not begun soon, it would have been necessary to remove the window altogether. As it is, the glass will remain in place while the exterior is re-pointed and new steel bars are inserted to support the leadwork. On the inside, layers of flaking paint are being carefully removed from the stone mullions before they are repaired and restored.