Removing unwanted bulges

This is not, you’ll be pleased to hear, yet another article on how to prepare for summer beachwear, but is the continuing tale of the Church St boundary wall.

Winter frosts and many years of saturation had not only destroyed the new harling, but had also produced some nasty bulges in the wall.

The simple answer - take the sections down and re-build them nice and straight and with plenty of new mortar. And that is just what Andrew and Craig of Laing Traditional Masonry are doing. They’ve also been tipping large numbers of wheelbarrows of lime mortar inside the wall to fill the voids left as the old clay mortar crumbled. The wall should be stronger than it has been in quite some time.

Inside, Graham and Christoph continue to be busy re-instating the woodwork. The pews are almost done now and the building is beginning to look like a church once more. Interestingly, one section of broad old planking resting on oak supports was found under the table pew opposite and to the west of the pulpit. In 1758 this table pew belonged to sherriff clerk William Davidson. And it seems that the Davidsons were fond of it, as the remaining table pew is also older than the others on the ground floor.

Stone conservator Karolina Kubisz has begun work on the Medieval gravestone. Found near the pulpit during work to the church around 1980, the stone has since been on display in the west porch. The work will stabilise the stone so that it lasts many more centuries. The paper poultice highlights the carvings beneath.