Building Repairs and the Conservation of the Painted Ceiling in the New Chapel at lghtham Mote

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Building Repairs and the Conservation of the Painted Ceiling in the New Chapel at lghtham Mote

STUART PAGE

Abstract Ightham Mote in Kent is an important moated house with a complex architectural development. The sixteenth-century painted ceiling in the New Chapel is especially valuable, but has previously suffered from environmental stress suggested by flaking paint and discolouration.

The need for environmental change was acknowledged by all those concerned, and it was as necessary to safeguard the painted decoration from continued deterioration as it was to stabilize the building structure. The identification, tendering and implementation of repairs to the ceiling conditioned the contract for the repair of the whole structure. Careful study has led to further discoveries and consideration of the ceiling's history.

Introduction

Soon after acquisition in 1985, the National Trust embarked on an extensive programme of repairs and works to enable lghtham Mote and its gardens to be opened to the public. In January 1988 the National Trust appointed Stuart Page Architects to prepare a detailed study of lghtham Mote, which reviewed the programme of repairs and conservation.

As a result of this study, the North-East Quarter was identified as the area in greatest need of attention, and from 1990 to 1991 this Quarter became the focus of a careful and thorough conservation programme.

Previous repairs had prevented major structural failures, but had been curtailed by a lack of finance. Acquisition by the Trust allowed

20 Journal of Architectural Conservation No 2 July 1998

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The Painted Ceiling in the New Chapel at Ightham Mote

the care of the estate and house to be placed on a long-term and more secure footing.

Following the initial study and the start of the repairs project in 1991, Stuart Page Architects undertook a quinquennial survey of the whole property, including the Mansion, the Cottages, the Coach House and the standing remains of the west courtyard range. The quinquennial survey examined the structure and services in detail, and allowed the Trust to formulate a conservation programme based on a sequence of phases that reflected the architectural, historical and functional divisions of the buildings (Figure 1).

Building works are funded by generous support from the public, the National Trust's members, legacies, resources allocated by the National Trust, and grant aid from English Heritage. Building and conservation contracts are subject to competitive tendering and careful analysis to ensure that the needs of the building are met, the works are in balance with available funds, and that they achieve value for money.

The structure is repaired and conserved using traditional techniques and materials wherever practical. The guiding philosophy is that the maximum amount of original material must be retained and the minimum amount of new material is inserted. The need for continuing

Figure 1 Aerial view of lghtham Mote (Peter Leach).

Journal of Architectural Conservation No 2 July 1998 21

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future care and maintenance is accepted as part of this philosophy. The visitors' route through the house is maintained where it is com

patible with the safety and needs of a building contract, and the works are described to the visitors using drawings, notes and, wherever possible, viewing points to work in progress.

Spring 1998 saw the completion of the North-West Quarter as the latest phase of works that have included the North-East Quarter, the Gate Tower, the Clock Tower, the Victorian Staircase, the East Range, three of the Mote Cottages, the Dovecote, and sections of the moat walls and East and West Bridges.

The North~ West Quarter

The Tudor Chapel, Conservatory, Drawing Room, Billiards Room and Victorian Staircase make up the North-West Quarter (Figure 2), the repair of which began on-site in 1996 with a contract period of 24 months. Three significant elements were in need of special attention: the sixteenth-century painted ceiling in the Tudor Chapel, the eighteenth-century Chinese wallpaper, and the fine painted seventeenth-century fireplace-surround and overmantel in the Drawing Room. Of these elements it was the painted ceiling in the Chapel that was the most significant, and its repair and conservation dictated the organization of the main contract, the sequence of building works and the contract period.

Historical context

Ightham Mote is a late medieval building that was improved in the early sixteenth century by its new owner, Sir Richard Clement. During the reign of Henry VII he had been a member of the privy chamber, but fell from grace on the King's death. Sir Richard married a wife of substantial means, and in 1521 he was able to purchase Ightham Mote and undertake a sequence of important building works. These included changes to the two-storey range to the north of the central courtyard, the upper chamber of which is now called the New Chapel. The structure, which dates from 1480, is oak framed at first-floor level, with the north wall and plinth and south plinth wall being constructed of ragstone. The southern ground-floor walls have been altered and moved, but at both ends the remains of an oak, open-arcaded elevation can be found.

The New Chapel has an oak-framed roof with moulded oak soulaces,


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Figure 2 Ightham Mote from north-west.

or ribs, that support painted oak infill panels. The ribs are decorated with chevrons in the Tudor livery colours of green and white, and the decorative panels are painted with a sequence of royal badges that include the roses of York, Lancaster and Tudor, the Beaufort portcullis, the pomegranate, the Castle of Castille, and grouped arrows (for Aragon). There are also panels with simpler patterns of white and green lozenges with either roses or fleur-de-lis at the intersections, and plain oak panels inserted in 1890--92.

The origin of the panels is uncertain, but Dr David Starky in his paper entitled 'lghtham Mote: Politics and Architecture in Early Tudor England', suggested that Sir Richard Clement commissioned the painting of the panels or obtained them from the revels stores containing decorative fittings constructed for the Field of Cloth of Gold.1

Extensive analysis of the construction of the building, dendrochronology of suitable timbers, and artistic, archaeological and architectural analysis will continue for some time. The latest view is, however, that the structure of the New Chapel dates from 1470 when it was built as a guest range, and that it included curved oak ceiling panels at that date. Although the building may have been intended as a guest range accessible only from the courtyard, it was linked to both the north and south range by the seventeenth century, during which it began to be used as a Chapel.

From 1890 to 1891 Thomas Colyer Ferguson Esq., the new owner of


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lghtham Mote, undertook a major programme of restoration, additions and drainage. The accounts of the contractor, H. Walford and Spokes of Oxford, record that the ceiling panels and ribs were removed and stored, but during reinstatement these were repaired, refixed and new sections of half-inch wainscot oak added wherever necessary. Photographs published in Country Life before and after the restoration show that little effort was made to conserve panels that were in poor condition, or to record the 1890 positions of the panels and soulaces, or indeed to reinstate panels in their original sequence.2.J·4

The structure as found

The roof of the Chapel consists of plain clay peg tiles on riven battens with oak rafters at a 50° pitch. Within the roof space a plank walkway ran across the collars at the head of the soulaces, allowing access from one end of the attic to the other. At the time of the quinquennial survey in 1991, the space between the curve of the panels and the roof to the north and south was covered with a deep layer of debris, nest materials and bird droppings. Access to the northern slope of the roof is limited by the width and depth of the moat so that slipped tiles can only be replaced with great difficulty. In consequence the upper surface of the oak boards was in constant danger from water penetration and fungal growth.

The New Chapel head plate was a composite of various oak members supporting the head and roof plates, and forming the window head. There was decay between the plates and the planted, moulded, oak frieze at the head of the internal panelling. Parts of the jettied bressumer and plate to the north elevation had also been boarded over to conceal serious decay. This followed precedents set by repairs elsewhere at the Mote where comer posts, junctions with horizontal members and vertical studs were all in poor condition and covered by applied boards.

The extensive use of dense cement renders during the 1890 works created significant problems for the longer-term survival of the timber frame. In all phases of the repairs it has been necessary to remove dense render panels and rebuild framing where water has been shed into and trapped by joints, thus encouraging fungal and insect infestation. In many areas, including the walls of the North-West Quarter, the head and sole plates, tenons and mortices had suffered in this way, making the structure unstable.


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The Painted Ceiling in the New Chapel at lghtham Mote

The painted ceiling and its construction

The panels and ribs are constructed of oak and although durable, their survival is probably due to free air movement in the attic and Chapel. There is anecdotal evidence of a white bloom on the painted panels and it was evident that the surface of the paint was flaking and fragile. The panels are approximately 3 m in length, 309 mm in width, and 15 mm in thickness. Their face had been finished with a plane or scraper, but the reverse, convex side remained roughly sawn or hewn. Each panel is fitted into a rebate on the rear of the soulace or rib, allowing for some movement in the shorter east-west axis.

The panels had been screwed through their upper surface into the soulace rebates and, at the upper collar, small softwood blocks were positioned over the edges of the panels through which nails fixed them to the ribs. Nineteenth-century repairs and additions were butt jointed with wooden battens screwed from the face surface to provide a rigid connection. The nails and screws had corroded, causing deterioration of their immediate surrounding timber and in some cases showing rust staining on the timber.

There are 46 panels, of which 11 are replacements dating from the repair contract of 1890. The remaining panels include sections of repaired or jointed panels, as well as full-length original panels, and it was accepted that where panels had been jointed they could be separated for removal and storage.

The New Chapel environment was controlled by oil-filled electric radiators, maintaining conservation heating at 5o above ambient temperature, and, as far as possible, controlling the relative humidity. Environmental recording undertaken by Bob Hayes of Colebrooke Consulting explained the unstable nature of the roof void above the vaulted ceiling in the summer when the daily cycle of solar heating and cooling produced wide variations. The annual deviation was from -9.ooc to+ 24.4°C in the Chapel and from -6.8°C to + 29.2oC above the ceiling.

The relative humidity within the New Chapel varied from 4 7.5% to 85.5%, while in the roof void it varied from 38% to 90.5%. The ceiling was therefore acting as an insulator to shield the Chapel from the temperature variations in the roof, so placing the boards and decoration at risk from thermal and moisture-related stress and damp penetration.


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Project planning

lghtham Mote is the responsibility of the Kent and East Sussex region of the National Trust. The repair and conservation of the property is planned and managed by means of project meetings held once every three weeks, involving the region's officers, the property manager and the consultant property architect. From time to time specialist advisers or members of the Trust's Head Office staff attend the project meetings or other special meetings to decide policy issues. In this way the broadest possible support and consensus for the planning of the project can be developed, allowing for special conservation issues.

An initial divergence of view arose between the architect and the conservators regarding the risks to the ceiling. During earlier investigations the conservators believed that the removal of the panels would place the very fragile paint surface at risk. They felt that the thin section of the panels meant that they could expand or contract as well as distort from their curved shape should they be moved. Any such movement would, of course, create difficulties in re-positioning the timbers and might result in further flaking of the paint surface.

Besides the problem of physical damage from building works, there was also concern over the variation within the environmental conditions during the work that might result in excessive re-hydration of the panels during storage.

While consideration of the technical aspects of the conservation of the paint and the panels was being pursued, the architects continued their structural survey of the condition of the timber frame of the building. It became clear that there was no reason to believe that the timber frame of the new Chapel was in any way different to other north-range frames or those elsewhere on the building where nineteenth-century repairs had inadvertently increased the decay of structural timber. The conservators and the Trust's staff were able to view the repairs to the Mote Cottages where a similar scale of work was being undertaken, and to see the extent to which panels would be at risk during the course of building operations should they remain onsite.

While production information for the building works was being prepared, the Trust's advisors pursued various courses of investigation:

• compilation of all known documentation for the ceiling's history; • tests of a range of consolidants; • tests for aqueous cleaning prior to consolidation;


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The Painted CeiUng in the New Chapel at Ightham Mote

• consideration of the need for retouching and reintegration of the paint surface.

Programme

Discussions on the conservation programme had begun in 1992 and increased in frequency and in depth, but in August of 1993 the project team decided that the original programme could not be met and that the investigation and tendering process for conservators would have to be undertaken well in advance of the main contract being let. Any attempt to undertake investigations during the course of the contract would probably have resulted in delays to the main contract and increased costs.

Earlier phases had shown that conservation work, whether it be glazing or masonry, could be tendered competitively and included as a sub-contract to the main or principal contractor's work, although this was the first instance at lghtham when specialist contractors were included in the building 'package'. The National Trust nominated a joinery conservator to undertake the repairs to the oak panels and this was added to the schedule of work and specification to be undertaken by the paint conservators.

The conservators' original estimate was that conserving the surface of the panels would take three months, with three conservators working for five days a week, and one senior conservator working two days per week. This would, however, have involved radical amendment to the building programme. Conservators were therefore allowed to comment on the contract period within their proposed method statements.

Method statements and tenders

By September 1994 the final form of the specification for the conservation of the ceiling had been agreed, including requirements for reporting, recording, and technical methods of treatment. Specialist conservators were invited to undertake small trials in accordance with a previously prepared specification and to submit method statements and recommendations to the Trust before selection. In view of this sequence, and the need for conservators to prepare detailed specifications on which the Trust would judge their proposals, it was agreed that the conservators would be paid a fee for their investigations and reports.

These trials involved close consultation with the Trust's advisers,


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English Heritage and the local authority, and careful reporting to the visitors and Trust's membership.

Trials using a rigid plywood cradle to support the panels had shown that, although stable and secure, the cradle was too unwieldy to enable ease of movement through the three rooms that linked the old and new Chapel. The architect's proposal that the panels be supported on a series of cradles hung from a scaffold structure on two walls of the Chapel was taken up by the Trust and its advisers. A fabric cradle was therefore proposed and designed by Kent Services, with sleeved ends that would be supported on the projecting arms of the scaffolding. The fabric cradle acted as a stretcher, supporting the panel in its natural curvature with its face upwards and sufficient space between each panel to permit inspection (Figure 3).

The cradles were supported on a purpose,made frame that could be lowered through the scaffolding and carried easily by two conservators through to the Oriel Room. From there it was passed through a squint and into the New Chapel before raising to the temporary storage posi, tion.

28

Three practices of spe, cialist conservators were invited to tender for the work, but in the event only two could do so. Each was given the opportunity to under, take examination, rever, sible tests and a small sample prior to the sub, mission of the method statement and tender for the main works.

Figure J Conservation of ceiUng panels with cradle behirul..

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Site preparation

Secure temporary storage and workshop space for conservators was required at the property. Although the contractor's compound con~ tained a large corrugated~metal shed, it was agreed that this would be unsuitable due to the high cost of insulating, weatherproofing and maintaining security remote from the house. A second alternative would have been to transport the panels to a conservator's studio, but this was discounted due to the cost of transport and packaging, and because risks in transit and off~site storage were felt to be too great.

As the North~ West Quarter contract would prevent public access to the upper floor of lghtham Mote for the duration of the work, it was then agreed that the old Chapel, in the North~East Quarter, would provide a suitable storage space and, with proper control and storage racking, provide a studio where the conservation and structural repair of the panels could be undertaken. The Chapel also had the advantage of previously installed environmental and security equipment, as well as close proximity to the site so that travel distance would be mini~ mized.

In order to assess the condition of the panels and to see what could be achieved as a means of temporary support and to make an assess~ ment of their stability, a programme of investigation began involving erection of temporary scaffolding, the selection of one typical panel and the construction of a supporting cradle.

The architects suggested a sequence of work that enabled protection to be in place for the panels and for the panels to be moved subject to the availability of storage in the Old Chapel. External scaffolding was erected to the first and second lifts on the external elevations and permanent glazing was removed and taken for storage. Temporary polycarbonate glazing and weatherproofing were added to the external elevation and the scaffolding raised to provide a temporary roof and vertical sheeting. At this point the roof tiles and battens were stripped and lateral stiffening provided to prevent the rafters moving out of alignment once relieved of the weight of the tiles. The building was closely observed, but in the event the temporary supports and panel infills were adequate and there were no problems with movement of the ceiling or structure. During this phase of work the joiners removed the screen, pulpit, pews, panelling and floorboards from the interior of the Chapel, enabling the interior to be scaffolded up to cornice level.


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The ceiling

Data monitoring in the Chapel roof space and exterior environment illustrated that external cycles and solar gain produced severe variations in temperature and relative humidity within the roof space, but conditions in the Chapel remained relatively constant. The thin ceiling boards were therefore subject to different conditions on their upper and lower sides, and this accelerated deterioration by producing stress and flexing cycles as well as occasional condensation. Variations in relative humidity, coupled with wide temperature variations, encouraged salt crystallization within the boards and paint surface, as well as fungal growth and further deterioration of the painting.

Humidity levels had been observed to cause a darkening of the board and paint surfaces during the winter, while the whitish surface deposition on the paint appeared to be the result of recrystallization of soluble salts. The possibility of a fungal bloom was, however, not discounted. It was agreed that thermal insulation would provide a much needed buffer to the stresses within the boarded ceiling. A regime of gentle heat input, similar to installations already undertaken in the North-East Quarter of lghtham Mote, would provide some degree of control and help to stabilize temperature and relative humidity variations.

A survey of the eaves' structure had shown that the curvature of the ceiling reduced the available space for insulation, building papers and ventilation to approximately 100 mm at the narrowest point, whereas, at the centre span, 1.8 m height was available.

The best solution for providing the insulation and water proofing above the boarded ceiling would be to use a building paper or underlay beneath the tiling battens, and to use a high-performance insulation, such as Polyfoam or Celotex, as close as possible to the panels. Maintaining air movement between the insulation and the panels was a consideration, as was the need for the insulation to be easily removable to enable inspection of their upper surface.

Analysis had been undertaken to determine the nature of the ground and paint layers on the panels, and found that the ground was a gesso with calcite as the major component, and with an animal protein as a binding medium. The medium of the paint layer was an oil with pigments including white lead vermilion, a copper pigment such a malachite or azurite, green earth and a variety of earth pigments without any surface coating. The decoration on the moulded soulaces


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or ribs proved to be the same as that on the panels. The condition of the ground and paint layers on the panels varied

considerably. In some areas these layers had been completely lost, while in others the ground layer was intact, but overlaying paint was lost. The various designs were partially obscured by a white, milky deposit that appeared to be a combination of a chalky deposition that may have been salts migrating from the base, or results of some earlier restoration work combined with microbiological organisms. Although there was evidence of localized attack by wood-boring insects, this was not extensive and did not threaten the structure of the panels. The conservators adopted different techniques and tested different materials for the consolidation of the panels.

The conservation treatments were divided into four categories: readhesion of the paint layers to ground layer, consolidation by means of a synthetic medium into the powdering pigment layers, cleaning, and possible further consolidation after reinstatement. These categories could not, however, be separate as each treatment overlapped and reinforced the previous treatment.

As each panel was removed and taken to store, its place was taken by a pre-cut ply panel, held in position by screwed blocks that ensured that the ribs did not move during the course of the building works. Because of this sequence and the need to protect the paint surface, it was agreed that the ceiling would be protected by a prior course of consolidation and conservation using a dilute solution of synthetiC resin to fix the painted decoration.

In some instances flakes of paint were detached from the panels and held in place only by spiders' webs. There was therefore a need for active intervention to consolidate the paint surface and to nourish the pigment to prevent further flaking. The possibility of using a protective paper applied to the painted surface was also discussed. The use of a synthetic resin raised aesthetic and ethical questions because the surface texture and reflectance of the paint would be changed, as would the brightness of the colour. Some form of consolidation had, however, to be applied if the paint surface was not to be lost, and a synthetic resin presented the best available material to undertake this work.

Cleaning tests were undertaken directly on the paint surface and also through an intervention layer of Japanese tissue, and it was found that the layer of surface dirt on the white residual material was susceptible to aqueous treatments due to the fugitive nature of the


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paint surface. A heated spatula was used to improve bonding in some particularly damaged areas, taking advantage of the thermoplastic nature of the consolidant.

It proved possible to safely clean the surface using cotton swabs and mineral spirits without any disturbance to the paint layer, and at this stage the white film deposit was removed and the paint layer became clear. It seemed unwise to use a facing adhesive or a tissue because of the possibility of setting up dimensional stresses that would affect the curvature of the panels.

Both conservators submitted method statements in December 1993, followed by the results of the consolidation trials in Aprill994. These documents were passed to the National Trust's staff and adviser on painted surfaces for analysis, while general contract documentation continued to be prepared and building works planned. The conservators assessed the feasibility of removing the panels and utilizing the new cradles and storage system, and advised that the removal would take 20 days. The period for removal, repair and reinstallation formed part of the sub-contract tenders, although the repair and reinstallation time was not so critical as they occurred at a time when the main contractor was engaged with structural repairs.

Consideration was given to the effectiveness of the consolidant within the variable environment of the Chapel. Temporary heaters were installed on-site to reduce high relative humidity levels, while on completion the whole of the North-West Quarter has come under a special conservation regime.

The joinery conservator worked alongside the paint conservator during the course of the removal to ensure that no damage occurred to the paint or to the ribs that had to remain in place. Temporary protection was also provided above the panels by laying cut panels of Plastazote on their upper surface. This had to be removed section by section, after which the joinery conservator removed the nails and screws that had been used as original fixings. In some instances the ends of battens, which had been fixed securely, had to be carefully sawn to be released, but in no cases did this involve altering or modifying the panels.

The panels were cleaned in the temporary studio by gentle dusting or vacuum cleaning to the reverse of the panels. The surface dirt, bloom and whitish crystalline deposits on the concave side of the panels had to be removed without affecting the consolidant or the fragile paint layer. A synthetic binding medium was introduced to re-saturate

32 Journal of Architectural Conseroation No 2 July 1998

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and consolidate the paint layer, but the degree of saturation was crucial to the final appearance of the paint layer as it was important to retain a matt rather than a gloss appearance.

It was decided not to touch in any areas of lost paint, even though there was a distinct visual difference at close quarters between those areas where the ground and paint layers were missing and those areas where only the paint layer was missing. There was a concern that the application of the consolidant to the face side of the panels might result in some distortion or differential movement. Therefore, a 5 per cent solution of synthetic resin was applied to the reverse of the panels to reduce differential stress and to serve as a partial moisture barrier.

Painted ribs

It was decided that the painted ribs had to remain in situ during the course of the building repair works. Although a significant number of the timber members that surrounded them had to be removed for repair, it was felt that the location of the ribs and the consequent disturbance to the whole framework of the building would be too great if they were removed. In order to accurately maintain the spacing between the ribs so that the painted panels could be replaced without undue distress, the gaps formed by the removal of the painted panels were temporarily filled with plywood blanks supplied by the contractor.

In other respects the conservation of the painted ribs was exactly the same of that of the panels. When it came to the point for reinstating the panels, the process of protection and transport was simply reversed. The panels were transported individually and refixed in the original position.

Reinstatement

Once the conservation and consolidation of the paintwork had been completed, the repairs to the oak panels had to be undertaken by the joinery conservator. There was no active infestation by fungi or woodboring beetle, but occasional splits and gaps between the original material and that of the nineteenth century needed repair. Wide cracks were, however, not filled, nor was any attempt made to realign those panels that were distorted.

The panels were moved one by one by the joinery conservator from the temporary store in the conservation studio to the site and fitted in


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posttton (Figure 4). Each panel was re-fixed using oak buttons or blocks screwed through to the ribs, but no nails or screws were passed through the panels. To prevent unnecessary compression of the panels and to allow some freedom of movement, a slip of balsa wood or a small block of Plastazote was used between the blocks and battens, and the panels. Wherever a nineteenth-century repair existed, it was butted up against the fifteenth-century panel and the two held in place by an oak batten again separated from the panels by slips of balsa or Plastazote.

At this stage the temporary protection formed by the sheets of Plastazote was replaced by the permanent Celotex insulation. During the outline and design process a wide variety of alternative methods of insulating the painted panels from the extreme environment of the roof void were considered. A detailed appraisal of alternative insulation materials, included purpose-designed quilts based on sleeping-bag technology, were undertaken. Eventually, cut sheets of Celotex were specified with the edges bound with tape to prevent damage and hinged with tape to permit them to be lifted out between the collar and the rafters. The insulation was returned section by section as work progressed so that at no stage were the panels unprotected.

On completion of the insulation work, work began to reinstate the

Figure 4 Stretcher frame during reinstatement.


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tiling battens and roof tiles. To avoid dust and reduce the risks from water penetration, a vapour-permeable sarking felt was used.

Health and safety

Even without the impact of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 1994 on the documentation for the contract, it was clear that the use of chemicals within restricted places was likely to create hazardous working conditions. Previous contracts had made special allowance for fire prevention, detection and the provision of fire-fighting equipment, but we were now faced with the need to allow for chemicals that might be volatile and hazardous. Manufacturers' health and safety documentation and COSHH data sheets were obtained and incorporated into all tender documentation and the Health and Safety Plan.

Ventilation was provided during the consolidation process by means of a proprietary extractor on a purpose-made frame with extendable, flexible ductwork. By connecting this to an aperture in the temporary polycarbonate glazing in the windows, it was possible to ventilate the working area and to pass any vapour directly to the outside air. Once the first-stage consolidation was complete, the ventilator was moved to the temporary conservation studio and used for the final-stage consolidation. The extractor fan was provided by the Trust and returned to them on completion of the project.

Archaeology

The National Trust consultant archaeologist, Peter Leach, undertook the recording of the structure and finishes of the building during the course of the repair contract. In this instance he provided full-size line drawings as a drawn record, as well as a photographic record, of the panels. In addition, 250 mm x 200 mm black and white photographs were taken, with Munsell colour references, before and after conservation of the panels.

In common with other phases of work at lghtham Mote, the archaeologist worked closely alongside the architect and the contractors during the course of the building work. The archaeological investigation included an allowance for dendrochronology wherever the sampling could be undertaken without risk to the fabric of the building.

It was always assumed that the Tudor Chapel was the result of building works by Sir Richard Clement between 1521 and 1530. Analysis of


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the structure, supported by dendrochronology, now proposes a date for this range between 1470 and 1480. The ceiling, with its Tudor livery and heraldic symbolism relating to Catherine of Aragon, was therefore added by Sir Richard Clement between 1521 and 1530.

With a felling date between 1470 and 1481, and the actual date probably nearer to 14 71, the significance of these findings is that the range is much earlier than hitherto thought, with Clement merely enhancing an existing structure. The trees, from which the timbers came were young and match the south-east England sequence more successfully than the Kent sequence. It is possible that they came from Sussex, suggesting there was a limited supply of suitable timber around lghtham at that period.

Close examination of the soulace and the roof- and wall-plate construction confirmed that it would have been physically impossible to have inserted panels behind the projecting rebates without removing the roof covering. It would have been equally impossible to have inserted the soulaces into an existing roof. It has therefore become increasingly unlikely that the panels were added by Sir Richard Clement and happened to fit the roof, a view that is supported by the fact that the decoration of the panels clearly relates to the width of the existing panels (the width between the existing soulaces).

This summary of the archaeology has been related to the conservation of the painted ceiling, but increasingly the sequence of building works and the decoration to the New Chapel have had a bearing on our understanding of the development of the whole of the North-West Quarter. Although the uncovering of a seventeenth-century painted balustrade within the Victorian staircase was expected from earlier evidence and written descriptions, the discovery of a painted beam on the west wall of the Chapel, dating from the early sixteenth century, raised new problems over the sequence of decoration and the character of the room.

The Trust has therefore convened a series of discussions between historians, archaeologists and those involved with the analysis and conservation of lghtham Mote with a view to reaching a greater understanding of this development. This process is continuing.


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Conclusion

The repair of the structure and the subsequent reinstatement of the panels in the New Chapel at lghtham Mote was a demanding task for the conservators, and involved difficult logistical problems for the main contractor. There was no doubt that the lengthy consideration given to the repair processes and the eventual decision to undertake the conservation as a sub-contract resulted in proper budgetary and time constraints. Not only has the conservation of a relatively unknown decorative and historically important section of the building been completed on time, but it has been achieved without extra costs or disturbance to the sequence of works. The decision to remove the panels from the site during the course of the work has been justified, as has the caution of the Trust's conservation advisers. The panels are now more secure than they have been since their original installation and are in a controlled environment that is monitored above and below to guard against fluctuations in temperature and water penetration.

Biography Stuart Page Dip Arch, RIBA Stuart Page is principal of an architecture and interior design practice based in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, specializing in the conservation and adaptation of historic buildings to new uses. Recent conservation projects include the repair and conservation of lghtham Mote and Hadlow Tower in Kent, Ypres Tower in Rye, Herstmonceux Castle in Sussex and Restoration House in Rochester, Kent.

Work at lghtham Mote has received the English Heritage Carpenters Award for the repairs to joinery and carpentry of the North-West Quarter, the RICS Award for Conservation, and a Stone Industries Commendation.

Acknowledgements Preliminary investigations, management and conservation of the ceiling, together with the subsequent preparation of this paper, have relied on the advice and support of many people, of whom the following are acknowledged for their particular support and advice: Dr Nigel Seeley, Surveyor of Conservation, National Trust; Christine Daintith, Conservator, National Trust; Christine Sitwell, Paintings Advisor, National Trust; John Chesshyre, Historic Buildings Representative, National Trust; Alan Bush, International Fine Arts Studio Limited; Tobit Curteis, Tobit Curteis Associates; Zahira Veliz, Private Conservator; John Hart, Joinery Conservator; R.F. Bevan,


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D.R. Nolans & Company, Quantity Surveyors; Bob Hayes, Colebrooke Consulting; Martin Thomas, Gifford & Partners; Michael Boyles, Structural Engineer; John Roffey, Kent Services Limited; Sindall Construction, Principal Contractor; and Alan Bush, now a partner in Bush and Berry Conservation Studio.

Notes 1 Starky, D., 'Ightham Mote: Politics and Architecture in Early Tudor England',

Archaeologia, Vol CVII, 1982, pp. 153--63. 2 Hall, M., 'Ightham Mote, Kent', Country Life, Vol CLXXXIV No 26, 28 June

1990, pp. 142-47. 3 Leyland, J., 'Ightham Mote', Country Life, Vol I, 17 April 1897, pp. 406-9. 4 Tipping, H.A. and Guest, T., 'Ightham Mote', Country Life, Vol XXI, 23 March

1907.


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Documents

Building Repairs and the Conservation of the Painted Ceiling in the New Chapel at lghtham Mote