e-Heritage and the Digital Museum

John Lewyn: The Mason Who Built the North

Very little is known about John Lewyn other than the catalogue of his works throughout the country. The earliest known commission is documented for repairs on Westminster Palace in 1351; plus other works at Windsor Castle in the 1360s. Developing what masons under Edward deemed “perpendicular”, regular planning, consistency of detail and the use of complex geometry to generate building designs. Medieval masons were freelance workers and would be expected to travel for work. This may explain why he was under contract as principle mason at Durham palatinate in 1353, and under Edward III in the later part of 1360s. What we do known is he was sent from Durham to Coldingham in the later 14th century, having worked on the Priory kitchen in the 1370s. There is also a mention of Lewyn at Jedburgh abbey, no doubt on a consultancy principle. No doubt Lewyn was one of the most sought after mason for the upper classes, and the new generation of ‘earls’ and ‘Lords’ in the country. He could be easily identified as the Capability Brown of fourteenth century England. If he was not involved in the design of the building, he was employed as a consultant. Almost all buildings in the north of the fourteenth century are accredited to him. Buildings such as Bardnard Castle, which was in the holdings of de Balliol, and Belsay in the de Middleton possession.

Today, Lewyn would be called a functionalist, although there is no decorative detail in his known works, it cannot be denied that he had asceticism and utility in mind when he invented the kitchen at Durham. The vault of intersecting ribs to form a perfect support for the lantern and at the same time delights the eye with its interwoven star.

Durham Cathedral:

In 1367 he was in charge of Durham Cathedral’s Great Priory kitchen. At the priory of Durham, it is certain that Lewyn was the designer of the kitchen and the cloister, of which the earlier part was carried out in his time. He was probably responsible for the tomb of Hatfield and may have something to do with the Neville screen, but the latter was made in London and sent to Durham in pieces by sea in 1380. Stylistic evidence suggests that the screen, which had been put in hand by 1376, was designed by Henry Yevele.

Bamburgh Castle:

21 May 1368 Lewyns was appointed by the crown to repair Bamburgh Castle. In 1375 Lewyn had received at Bamburgh diver sum of king’s money by the hands of Lord of Neville for repairs of the castle. Lewyns retained the money without completing these repairs.

Raby Castle:

In 1378, John, Lord Neville obtained from Hatfield a licence to crenelated his mansion at Raby, and a considerable part of the existing castle dates from that period, including the kitchen, which has many points that resemble Durham priory. The basement vaulted with 8 ribs springing from central octagonal pillar. Although not as decorative as Durham’s priory kitchen. It was raised by 21 meters by Carr.

Warkworth Castle:

The land into the possession of Henry de Percy the 2nd baron Percy, from John de Clavering in 1334. Having being promised the property from Edward III. Replacing the former stone keep built in the twelfth and thirteenth century. It wasn’t until Henry, 1st earl Percy when the commissioning of the building of the Donjon under the expertise of Lewyn’s. The complexity of the keep would suggest the Castle was constructed after the Priory kitchen at Durham. There is no definite dating of the keep, Historic England suggest a dating of c.1367 to 1400s. Heraldic evidence strongly suggests that this was built soon after 1380 at the latest, and at this time no mason of the first rank other than Lewyn is known to have been in practise in the north of England at this time.

The design of the keep is in the design of a Greek cross, but in an octagonal design concept. The most technological advance of the keep is the light well designed to catch rain water, instead of having to leave the walls of the castle to access water. The river Coquet located only a short walk from the castle, but would not have been practical for such a busy castle. All corners of the castle have been cut at angles for extra defence. The Percy’s were one of the most important families in Medieval England, therefore they needed a castle which was both practical, but also shows off the wealth of the family.

Dunstanburgh Castle:

He had however tempted to undertake work at Dunstanburgh for John of Gaunt. The early part of the century saw the castle built by Elias the Mason II; the lapse of only two generations was considered to have rendered its enormous gate-tower obsolete, and a complete transformation was projected. Lewyn’s contracted on 25 October 1380 to make a new ‘mantelet’ of freestone by the great tower (the original gatehouse) of Dunstanburgh, finding materials, carriage and workmanship. Between 1372 and 1383, the gate-passage was blocked at either end and the gatehouse ceased to function as an entrance and instead became the keep. Lewyn seems to have built the mantelet, and to have begun other works, but he left them in an unfinished state, with the result that John of Gaunt called in another mason, Henry Holme, who took over on 1 December 1381.  The campaign on the borders in 1379-81 must have resulted in increased difficulties and at the same time increased pressure to complete the works for the crown.

Scotland:

The only known commission Lewyn’s was involved on Scottish soil is Roxburgh Castle, where in 1378 he was contracted to work for the crown. A clause into contract freed Lewyn from blame during raids in the events of Scottish interference. The new wall was to run across the castle from north to south, thirty feet high with three towers, each fifty feet high, the central tower being provided with a gate and barbican. The work seems to have been finished in 1387. Although nothing survives of his work at the castle having been destroyed in the 16th century.

 Further Reading:

Cambridge, E., The masons and building works of Durham priory, 1339-1539, (Durham University Thesis, 1992)

Bishop, M.J.B., John Lewyn of Durham: A Medieval Mason in Practice (British Archaeological Reports British Series), BAR, 2007

Bishop, M.J.B., John Lewyn of Durham: A North Country Master Mason of the 14th century, Journal of the British Archaeological Association Vol. 151, 1998.

 A few days ago I was approached by a tourist who complained that they were unable to visit the entireity of the Cathedral, becuase Evensong was forbidden them to do so. I was stunned. Having worked here for nearly four years, I quickly understood how a UNESCO site fitted in with the day-to-day workings of the church. As complicated as it can be, there needs to be a balance. What also made matters that little more difficult to comprehend, she complained that as no photographs were ble to be taken she was 'lucky to take a picture of the Shrine'. Deeming the cathedral as a tourist site which is not unusual. One of my favourite sayings by a visitor is ‘look it’s the set of Harry Potter’ (the Cathedral cloister having being used in the first two Harry Potter films). Forgetting it is a church is pretty standard in heritage. So, what can be said in the matters of separation between church and heritage? Is it possible to even separate them in light of the value and economic benefits of tourism. Westminster Abbey is an example where during services, the purpose of toursm is forbidden. Only those wishing to visit for prayers were allowed to enter. Remembering they have guards on the door to ensure no tourist slips in without being noticed. Here we have an example of the extreme, then the otherside where tourist are allowed entry, but access is limited. Hopefully I can bring to light the problems facing churches and how they manage themselves as tousist sites.

St Cuthberts Shrine, Durham Cathedral. Copyright Dean and Chapter of Durham

In Barcelona, Gaudi's Sagrada Familia, the reasons for seeking completion of the cathedral are numerous, a persuasive argument relates to the three million tourists that visit the cathedral each year. The relationship between heritage and tourism are complex, intimate but now embedded in the discourse of heritage but they take on an additional significance with respect to the category of World Heritage. (Bourdeau; 1972, p11)

(World Heritage, Tourism and Identity: Inscription and Co-production)

One of the great challenges of heritage and the ecclesiasties of the church is how to manage these particular problems. One of the more complex examples of heritage management is the inscription of Paris, Banks of the Seine in 1991. The site comprises of the famous Notre Dame Cathedral, a 19th century restoration of the medieval building. The cathedral remains an active church, with an estimated 13 million visitors every year. For ecclesiastical purposes the websites states:

To pray at the Cathedral As a church, the Cathedral is completely assigned to the cult. Some places are bound to a particular spiritual approach (statue of the Virgin of the pillar, Chapel home to meet a priest, Chapel of the Holy Sacrament...).

(http://www.notredamedeparis.fr/en/visites/informations-pratiques/preparer-sa-visite/)

As a UNESCO site, the Cathedral alongside the entirity of the listing argued as a place of Outstanding Universal Value under the said criteria:

 (i) to represent a masterpiece of human creative genius;

(ii) to exhibit an important interchange of human values, over a span of time or within a cultural area of the world, on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town-planning or landscape design;

(iv) to be an outstanding example of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates (a) significant stage(s) in human history (http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/600/)

Notre Dame Cathedral is difficult to determine as a top tourist site where does tourism start and end. When a site is built upon and ‘made’ into a tourist site, then the function of them becomes almost secondary. Although the primary purpose should be pastoral, rather than a show piece to ensure its authenticity. In other words if the atmosphere of a church is removed then it no longer becomes a church as such. A further divide can be placed upon whether a church is essentially a tourist site completely the moment an admission charge is established. Are we paying a donation for the welfare of the church church or admission to a tourist site like Battle Abbey for example? Or is it one in the same.The times in which I have visited York Minster for example, you find yourself forgetting that it is a place of worship. Even more so: how do you go about managing between prayer and heritage when someone is required to pay an admission charge? Is the future of churches sucumbed to heritage property becuase they depend clealy on income from tourism?

“On other occasions, a religious place is visited because of its outstanding artistic or historic value, as in the case of cathedrals, churches, monasteries and abbeys. The hospitality offered in these places should not be limited to historic or artistic information however accurate; it should also highlight their religious identity and purpose. It may also be useful to mention that for many tourists such visits often constitute a unique occasion to know about the Christian faith. At the same time, efforts should be made to avoid disturbing the religious celebrations in course by planning the tourists’ visits according to the needs of worship”.

Cf. PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR CULTURE, For a Pastoral Care of Culture (May 23, 1999), 37.

I’m probably a little slow on the uptake regarding the sketchfab website, so I apologize in advance. For those who are not aquainted with it, I will briefly explain how it works:

Sketchfab is a platform to publish, share and discover 3D, VR and ARcontent. It provides a viewer based on the WebGL and WebVRtechnologies that allows to display 3D models on the web, to be viewed on any mobile browser, desktop browser or Virtual Reality headset.

The purpose of mentioning this app is not to delve too deep in the VR experience, but to talk about an example by the Northumberland National Park. What NNP have produced is very much an educational tool rather than a ‘games’ format, so here they allow the user to view the complete 3D image. What we see here is typical of the 3D imagery from multiple creators. But, using monuments in the Park’s catalog to show school groups what these sites look like.  

NATIONAL museum, Edinburgh

If anyone has ever watched Monkey Life on Pick TV, then you immediately know the sound of Golden Cheeked Gibbon calls. There so distinctive. But these beautiful primate like many across the globe are endangered species, many sold into the pet trade. Very little information about the Gibbons was known until the partnership between Monkey World in Dorset and the Asian Endangered Species programme, set out to learn more about these incredible animals. I don't know about anyone else, but until I watched the show I never realised or even contemplated the abuse of primates. I grew up in the generation where using primates was cute or funny in adverts. The infamous PG tips adverts, even the use of Capuchins in film, because we think there is nothing wrong with ownership of primates. I never questioned whether this was wrong or even thought about it. Last year I was shocked when walking past a Virgin bank and a Chimp was used to advertise a bank account. I began to wonder what happened to him/her, what abuse are they suffering, and importantly what future do they have. These are all key questions I ask now when I think of primates used to sell products. I remember I was research about my favourite Macaques, the bear or strump-tail. Reading that they are being used in labs to test hair loss products. I was down founded. Hair-Loss? really? These Macaques are endangered speices and men are worried about loosing their hair?  The key point here is, education is essential. To understand why we as human are using chimps or other primates to meet our own ends.

When I think of primate abuse, I can’t help but think of Trudy, the victim of Mary Chippenfield, who thought it was acceptable to beat and kick a baby who was less than two years old because she didn't do what she was told. reading an article recalling the courtcase event, and owner of Monkey World Dr. Alison Cronin pointed out that abuse of primates was nothing unusual, that what Chippenfield was doing was perfectly legal. Makes you wonder, doesn't it? Watching an episode of Monkey Business with Trudy at eighteen month under the name ‘Alice’, she was petrified of the boisterous baby male chimps: Hananya, Tiko, Semach and Simon. All they wanted was to play with her, she would avoid any confrontation with them, finding comfort in humans. To think that baby chimp, would grow into a well founded, happy chimp we see today. But, what happened to her family, the other chimps who suffered at the hands of Chippenfield.

The exhibition showcased a series of taxidermy primates, for the purpose of educating people on the conservation work behind endangered species. The design used a variety of cases, with specific types of monkey’s, creating an authentic background to fit with the origin of which they led. What must also be stressed is the taxidermy was done when the animals had died. Although interestingly they incorporated a few specimens of skulls and paws from the illegal pet trade. The exhibition was not only about educating adults, but also for the kids, by providing different games to highlight specific things which monkeys do, such as searching for termites, climbing, and even to get an idea what different monkeys see whether colour, green or black/ white.

Just recently I went to a preview showing of ‘inconvenient Sequel’, a follow on from the 2006 Oscar winning documentary an Inconvenient Truth. The film was argued as ‘ albeit arguably less impactful -- coda to its acclaimed predecessor’, but in my belief this was not at all the point of this film. In today’s society we have a very different attitude to climate change than what we did ten years ago. The impact of AIT was to show the problems, educate us on what is climate change, and how we can go about changing an uncertain future. As Al Gore had said, it is easier to look at the past, because the future is uncertain. It is this uncertainty which drives many anti-climate change voices to consider global warming as a way of causing unnescessary panic. In AIS, Gore had demonstrated the threat of high sea levels as impacting on American soil. For example, the potential flooding of Manhattan and the area around Ground Zero. This was one of the first great criticism at the time. Then in the 2017 film, we see evidentce of what was predicted if we did not act on the advice of the scientists. This is what the documentary is about.

What does An Inconvenient Sequel tell us about the future of heritage, i hear you ask. Well, quite a lot. During my year at the University of Stirling, I was looking at this very same problem. Here is an example of what I wrote on the Great Barrier Reef:

                                  The Great Barrier Reef (GBR), in Australia was designated as World Heritage in 1981. Covering an area of three hundred and forty-eight thousand square kilometres, it includes extensive cross-shelf diversity within the GBR, there are two thousand five hundred reefs over nine hundred islands, collectively these landscapes and seascapes provides some of the most spectacular maritime panorama:

There are over ‘one thousand five hundred species of fish, four hundred species of coral, four thousand mollusk and two hundred species of birds, plus a mass diversity of sponges,anemones, marine worms, crustaceans, and other species. No other WH property has such biodiversity’ (‘Great Barrier Reef’, UNESCO, (2016), Available at: <whc.unesco.org/en/list/154> [accessed on 6 March 2017] UNESCO)

GBR fulfils the concept of integrity through the characteristic of ‘wholeness’, by including the entire reef, which was viewed as the only way to ensure the integrity of the ecosystem in all its diversity. The GBR comes under stress from natural events such as ‘cyclones, crown-of-thorns, starfish outbreaks, and large influxes of freshwater from extreme weather events’. As well as human influences, such as tourism, shipping and coastal developments. Some of the vital ecological, physical and chemical processes occur outside of the boundaries of UNESCO, which are key to the long term survival and conservation of the GBR. Thus effective conservation programs are needed across local catchments, marine and coastal zones.

The human activity of burning fossil fuels which trap carbon dioxide in the atmosphere have increased the average global temperature by 0.6˚C over the past century. In the oceans, the change has been approximately 0.1 C. The warming of the ocean has occurred in areas where marine life flourish. Coral is the ocean organism most vulnerable to the rising temperatures. Researchers have found evidence of the reefs bleaching. This occurs by ‘ejecting their symbiotic algae at even slight temperature rises. Bleaching,(‘Great Barrier Reef’, UNESCO, (2016), Available at: <whc.unesco.org/en/list/154> [accessed on 6 March 2017], UNESCO) therefore, slows coral growth, making them susceptible to disease, and result in large scale death of the reef’9. Climate change also has implication for reef life, such as migrating fish, predatory seabirds and sea turtles (‘Climate Change and the Great Barrier Reef, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, GBRMPA, (2006), Available at: <http://gbrmpa.gov.au/about-the-reef/biodiversity [Accessed on 23 March 2017]).

Therefore, the effect of climate change on the coral reef has implications for UNESCO’s concept of integrity. The characteristic of intactness requires the condition of the reef to remain as its inscribed. However, the effects which include bleaching and changes in the biodiversity means that the reef will no longer achieve this requirement. In 2015, it was reported that UNESCO were reconsidering GBR’s heritage status and be listed instead as in danger by the United Nations, having lost fifty percent of it coral in the last thirty years. In 2016, the UN ruled against the GBR as in danger, saying that it was concerned about the threat of climate change and must show significant progress in its conservation program, which gave it five years to halt the deterioration . Therefore, the rising temperatures of the sea caused by climate change threatens the integrity of the GBR, making the future designation problematic.

This segment was part of an essay titled: Identify and Evaluate the Range of Climate Change Related Threats to the Integrity of World Heritage Sites, Giving Examples from Developed and Developing Nations. This was an assignment at the University of Stirling, and remains the property of myself and the University of Stirling.

The Great Barrier Reef is one of many problems which are affecting the future of the natural world in light of Global Warming. One of the most devastating element of AIS was the footage from Greenland, where Al Gore is led by a Scientist from the observatory, who explains that much of the ice has dramatically melted since the 1980s to the present day, and continues to do so. Then ofcourse we have that quote by Donald Trump ‘Global Warming, its freezing here’ - Yet in cities such as Miami, who have experienced suvere floods, and currently Italy has been hit with a draught. The UK is experience extreme weather, evidence found in Hull and Carlisle in recent years. This year has been the most irregular weather condition in the North of England, occasional hot days, but generally most of the weather has been wet since May. We didnt even has the typical April showers which we are noramally accusom to in England.