The front of St Giles Hill Graveyard showing the damaged wall section to the left of the gate.
You may have noticed that we have carried out some emergency repair work on a part of the front wall of the graveyard because the extreme wet had hastened its possible collapse.
The damaged section of the wall this September when a new pavement was being installed (reason for red barriers)
Saddleback capping bricks sitting on a course of normal bricks
The winter months are usually avoided because the lime mortar dries slowly. The work was done in two stages to allow the mortar to dry. First, flints were mortared in place and left for a couple of days. Then a course of bricks was set on top. This is not the finish. A course of saddleback capping bricks is needed to finish off. We don’t currently have enough capping bricks to finish the job.
Repair work is scheduled to resume next year when we have acquired specialist capping bricks that match the originals.
We need 40 to 45 capping bricks to replace those lost. They are unavailable as reclaimed bricks. We have found a good modern match, that will need to be cut down to size at extra cost. The total cost will be £340. We are currently collecting the money to buy them. If anyone can spare the odd £5 in these difficult times, it would help a lot. FSGHG bank details can be found on the website. SUPPORT US
As you can see in the photo, the lime mortar used is rather yellow. An identical lime mortar has been used elsewhere in the graveyard and it does tone down with time.
The wall after a course of bricks had been mortared in place.