{"id":325,"date":"2026-03-17T14:15:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T14:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/?p=325"},"modified":"2026-03-17T14:15:42","modified_gmt":"2026-03-17T14:15:42","slug":"a-rare-tour-of-canterbury-cathedral-with-a-focus-on-recent-conservation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/2026\/03\/17\/a-rare-tour-of-canterbury-cathedral-with-a-focus-on-recent-conservation\/","title":{"rendered":"A Rare Tour of Canterbury Cathedral with a Focus on Recent Conservation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last <\/span>week, <\/span>the <\/span>MSc <\/span>students <\/span>in <\/span>Architectural <\/span>Conservation <\/span>were <\/span>granted <\/span>an <\/span>extraordinary <\/span>behind-<\/span>the-<\/span>scenes <\/span>tour <\/span>of <\/span>Canterbury <\/span>Cathedral<\/span>, <\/span>led <\/span>by <\/span>Jonathan <\/span>Deeming, <\/span>Partner <\/span>at <\/span>Purcell <\/span>Architects<\/span> and <\/span>surveyor <\/span>of <\/span>the <\/span>fabric of the Cathedral. <\/span>The <\/span>visit <\/span>offered <\/span>a <\/span>rare <\/span>insight <\/span>into <\/span>the <\/span>meticulous <\/span>conservation <\/span>work <\/span>that <\/span>keeps <\/span>this <\/span>historic <\/span>masterpiece <\/span>standing.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Surveyor of the Fabric Jonathan Deeming, Doctoral Candidate Dlara Naqi and students of the MSc in Architectural Conservation inspecting work on the Cathedral Gate<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Our <\/span>journey <\/span>began <\/span>at <\/span>the <\/span>cathedral\u2019s <\/span>gate, <\/span>where <\/span>newly <\/span>restored <\/span>stonework <\/span>with <\/span>delicate <\/span>relief <\/span>decoration <\/span>sits <\/span>alongside <\/span>carefully <\/span>preserved <\/span>earlier <\/span>fabric, <\/span>including <\/span>early <\/span>20th-<\/span>century <\/span>plastic <\/span>repairs. <\/span>The <\/span>masons <\/span>demonstrated <\/span>the <\/span>final <\/span>stages <\/span>of <\/span>sculptural <\/span>work, <\/span>explaining <\/span>how <\/span>stone <\/span>selection, <\/span>carving, <\/span>and <\/span>cleaning <\/span>methods <\/span>are <\/span>tailored <\/span>to <\/span>harmonize <\/span>with <\/span>centuries <\/span>of <\/span>accumulated <\/span>layers.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
A living monument: finalising the restored relief decoration of the Cathedral Gate.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

From <\/span>there, <\/span>we moved to the South Transept window, discussing its behaviour after a recent restoration. We then <\/span>ascended <\/span>to <\/span>the <\/span>normally <\/span>inaccessible <\/span>roofs, <\/span>exploring <\/span>the <\/span>recent <\/span>interventions <\/span>at <\/span>the <\/span>connections <\/span>between <\/span>trusses <\/span>and <\/span>wall <\/span>plates. <\/span>Jonathan <\/span>guided <\/span>us <\/span>through <\/span>the <\/span>complex <\/span>challenges <\/span>of <\/span>ventilating <\/span>a <\/span>roof <\/span>sheathed <\/span>in <\/span>lead <\/span>and <\/span>sarking, <\/span>highlighting <\/span>how <\/span>subtle <\/span>technical <\/span>choices <\/span>can <\/span>have <\/span>a <\/span>profound <\/span>impact <\/span>on <\/span>the <\/span>long-<\/span>term <\/span>preservation <\/span>of <\/span>historic <\/span>fabric.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Inspecting the behaviour of the recently restored South Transept Window.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Exploring the repairs to the oldest surviving roofs of the Cathedral<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Our <\/span>final <\/span>stop <\/span>was <\/span>the <\/span>Lady <\/span>Chapel, <\/span>where <\/span>beautifully <\/span>restored <\/span>sculptures <\/span>and <\/span>luminous <\/span>stained <\/span>glass <\/span>offered <\/span>a <\/span>striking <\/span>example <\/span>of <\/span>how <\/span>conservation <\/span>can <\/span>revive <\/span>the <\/span>cathedral\u2019s <\/span>artistic <\/span>and <\/span>spiritual <\/span>heritage. <\/span>For <\/span>the <\/span>students, <\/span>the <\/span>tour <\/span>was <\/span>an <\/span>unforgettable <\/span>opportunity <\/span>to <\/span>witness <\/span>conservation <\/span>in <\/span>action, <\/span>blending <\/span>craft, <\/span>strategy, <\/span>and <\/span>scholarship <\/span>to <\/span>safeguard <\/span>a <\/span>living <\/span>historic <\/span>monument.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
The beautiful fan vaulting of the Lady Chapel.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

To apply: https:\/\/www.kent.ac.uk\/courses\/postgraduate\/2025\/362\/architectural-conservation\/<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last week, the MSc students in Architectural Conservation were granted an extraordinary behind-the-scenes tour of Canterbury Cathedral, led by Jonathan Deeming, Partner at Purcell Architects and surveyor of the fabric of the Cathedral. The visit offered a rare insight into the meticulous conservation work that keeps this historic masterpiece standing. Our journey began at the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39949,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/39949"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=325"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":335,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/325\/revisions\/335"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=325"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=325"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/conservation\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=325"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}