Historic Scotland Publications

Citation

McCormack, P. (1998), "Historic Scotland Publications", Structural Survey, Vol. 16 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/ss.1998.11016aae.005

Historic Scotland Publications

Historic Scotland Publications

Conference Proceedings: Historic Scotland Traditional Building Materials Conference

Edited by Ingval Maxwell and Neil RossHistoric Scotland1997135 pp.£14.95

TAN 8; The Historic Scotland Guide to International Conservation Charters

D. BellHistoric Scotland199793 pp.£8.00

TAN 12: Quarries of Scotland

Andrew A. McMillan (contributions by Richard J. Gillanders)Historic Scotland199784 pp.£12.50

Research Report: A Future for Stone in Scotland

Hutton and RostronHistoric Scotland1997144 pp.£12.50

Allied to the growing awareness of the built heritage, there has been a steady increase in the number of publications produced by the various conservation agencies and organisations. The Technical, Conservation, Research and Education (TCRE) Division of Historic Scotland is no exception and since its inception in 1993 has produced publications on a wide variety of subjects specific to the Scottish built heritage. The following are four such publications.

As part of their aim to research and develop skills relating to the built heritage, and to raise standards in conservation practice, the TCRE Division, in association with the RICS in Scotland, held a two day conference inStirling on 3-4 September this year. The event and the Conference Proceedings published as a result, were directed at anyone involved in the repair and maintenance of buildings with the aim of bringing together all aspects of the current revival in the use of traditional materials, raise awareness of their value and promote Scottish resources. Whether the conference achieved this, and whether this publication will reach the audience expected remains to be seen. However, by reproducing most of the papers given ­ including those on the history, supply and demand of building materials; sustainability; training and education; sources of information; ethics, and papers on a variety of different materials ­ this publication provides an informative and well presented background on a wide range of subjects relating to traditional materials and their use.

For the most part, the publications produced by the TCRE Division consist of a series of 12 technical advice notes (TANs), the most recent of which were launched in connection with the conference. Their object is to provide an understanding of the traditional building materials of Scotland and their various working methods and construction techniques. Both TAN8, The Historic Scotland Guide to International Conservation Charters, and TAN12, Quarries of Scotland, were published this year.

Where most conservation publications do no more than briefly touch upon the important issue of building conservation philosophy ­ tending instead to concentrate on the more practical aspects ­ TAN 8 relates specifically to the "ethics and philosophy of conservation". The first such document was the Manifesto of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB), founded by William Morris in 1877. This attempted to establish a clear and logically defensible conservation philosophy and, although brief, marks the starting point for the later treatise which adopts and develops its underlying principles. TAN 8 traces the chronology of the ensuing international charters, conventions and recommendations.

The author aptly describes these charters as "guide(s) to good practice" and explains how these form the basis of current international conservation philosophy. He deals with the seemingly elemental, and yet important, questions of "Why do we conserve?" and "What do we conserve?" with successive chapters devoted to conservation ethics, practical aspects of work on site and legal and fiscal measures. Each chapter deals with its subject matter through extensive reference to the charters, which are reproduced in the text, thus showing the chronological development by unusually relating specific clauses to the subject under discussion. In most cases the material is presented in tabular form which, although daunting at first, is worthy of perseverance as it shows how each of the charters relate to one another and how conservation philosophy has developed.

Although this publication is written for a Scottish readership, the contents and principles relate to international charters and are therefore universally applicable. Throughout the document footnotes are used extensively and it ends with a three-page bibliography, organised under useful headings, with sources of further reading. Two useful appendices, giving a chronological list of the charters and their authors and, by way of background, the SPAB Manifesto, complete this document, making it an invaluable source for anyone involved in conservation and inevitably, therefore, its underlying philosophy.

As with any country, Scotland has its own sources of building stone, ubiquitous in its architecture and giving Scotland its indigenous character. TAN 12 complements an associated publication on the quarries of England and Wales which was published in 1995. It summarises the characteristics of the various Scottish building stones and how these were once extracted, with special emphasis on their use in building. The TAN offers a historical and practical view of the subject with the aim of providing practitioners, and those involved in education and training, with an insight into how physical geological conditions determine design and architectural character so that a more informed approach may be taken in the use of stone. The document has relevance not only to the conservation of historic buildings but also, through emphasis of the benefits of using stone in building, to modern architectural design.

Through the various chapters, the document briefly traces Scotland's geological history, by outlining the different stone types and their origins, and through a captioned pictorial record, drawing heavily on the British Geological Survey photographic record, illustrates building stone quarries and working methods during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The chapter on geological classification is of a more general nature and is particularly useful for its descriptions of the geological constraints affecting the use of each stone type in the different parts of a building. The document succeeds in its aim, providing a very useful background and working document: Appendix 2 lists the Scottish quarries that remain open and the TAN ends with a detailed two page bibliography, useful addresses and a glossary.

The Research Report: A Future for Stone in Scotland, was commissioned by Historic Scotland in December 1994 and was carried out by Hutton and Rostron, a Surrey based firm of architects. As with TAN 12 it was born out of concern over the decline in the Scottish building stone industry. It sets out to examine the existing market for dimensioned stone products, establish the scope for developing new products suitable for modern construction and explores ways by which the Scottish stone industry might arrest its decline. The TAN draws heavily on the experience and data collected as part of a broader study carried out on behalf of the DoE ­ and what is now the Stone Federation ­ published by HMSO in 1980.

The report assesses the stone industry and makes recommendations, similar to those made in the original study, with extensive use of graphs and tables of information. It takes into account national considerations such as employment and sustainable development, considers the views of designers, national building stone bodies, manufacturing masons, quarry operators and suppliers, and provides general conclusions and recommendations affecting the way that the stone industry should operate. It is not a report of general interest, but provides invaluable information about the industry and a useful insight for those operating closely within it.

All four publications are well presented, forming, along with other publications from the TCRE Division, a set of useful and informative documents. Other publications include: TANs on lime mortars, plasterwork, thatching, earth structures, access to the built heritage, stone cleaning and fire protection; research reports on various aspects of stone; and other publications on windows, the repair of buildings and training and working in conservation. Those reviewed are well illustrated through the use of photographs, diagrams and charts, are well presented and represent good value for money.

Paula McCormack