Old College

On one of the hottest days of the year to date, Old College was shrouded in sea mist this morning.

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

Fount of knowledge

The tall Gothic window on the staircase of the main tower needs some attention.

3D scans of the original stone have been taken this week so that a new central pillar, identical to the original in every detail, can be cut.

The scanning has been done by Stone Detailer Joe Bradley from Masonry Design.

An early image of the Castle Hotel shows the window frame without glass.

This begs the question, was the glass fitted by the hotel’s original developer, Thomas Savin?

Or was it installed after the University acquired the site in 1867?

Once more the weather has taken its toll.

The curved glass panes will need to be carefully removed so the original stone pillar can be replaced.

As we mentioned in our feature on heritage glass back in January, removing old glass with its many imperfections in the cold of winter increases the risk of it breaking.

So we’ve waited for the relative warmth of summer.

And who has noticed the small hole in the stone sill below the window?

In the architect J P Seddon’s own words, this was for ‘a segmented aspidal projection’.

In other words, he intended to place a small fountain there and the hole was for the jet of water.

A water fountain that became a fount of knowledge.

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

The Welsh Lady

Have you ever noticed the woman in a traditional Welsh hat high up on Old College?

Conservation work on the grotesque mythical creatures dotted around the grade 1 listed building is underway.

First up are the seven gargoyles that look down on King Street from the 6th floor of North Seddon.

Amongst them is the Welsh lady, the least grotesque of her contemporaries and possibly one of a kind.

Weighing around 100kgs each and carved from limestone, the gargoyles house the upper sections of the pipes that drain the rain off the roofs.

Indeed, the word gargoyle stems from the French gargouille - a "conduit for waterflow", and the gargling noise of rapidly draining water immediately springs to mind.

The conservation work is being done by a specialist team from Skillingtons in Grantham.

As with so much of the stonework on the Old College, the elements have not been kind to the gargoyles, but the intricacy of the carvings means the emphasis is on preservation rather than restoration.

For the Welsh Lady, the black gypsum crust that appears to have grown over her face and neck is being carefully removed, chipped away by hand and softened for removal by a poultice.

Even after a day’s work, the change is noticeable.

Once cleaned, she will be stabilised and any fissures or cracks in the stone will be grouted.

We’ll be following the Skillingtons team as they work their way around the Old College to conserve these weird and wonderful creatures, including two that feature the words ‘Error’ and ‘Darkness’!

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

Rock bottom

We’ve been digging down into the rock beneath Old College.

Making the building accessible for everyone was a key consideration from the outset for this ambitious project.

How many former students and staff remember the endless staircases climbed between lectures and seminars?

Thirteen lifts are being installed across the five buildings that make up the Old College project.

In the Ferguson building, which opened in 1898, a triangular lightwell that extends over 5 floors is being adapted for a new lift.

Lined with glazed yellow bricks and large leaded windows, it is dramatic though rarely noticed.

Featuring glass on three sides, the new lift will enable visitors to effortlessly move between the floors of the World of Knowledge zone, whilst they marvel at this hidden gem of Victorian construction.

To accommodate the lift and its workings, we have had to dig deep into the bedrock below the Old College basement.

Once the newly dug hole has been lined and waterproofed the restoration of the lightwell can begin and the new lift installed.

Can you spot the top of the lightwell in the last of this week’s images?

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

Walkabout

It’s a privilege to walk around the Old College and see the progress made from one week to the next.

High up on the tower, and the scaffolding is coming down.

As each level is removed, new windows are being fitted and the stonework restored where the scaffolding was fixed to the tower or close to the walls.

The re-slating of the conical roof over the old South Seddon lecture theatre and soon to be cinema, has also been finished.

This means the scaffolding can be lowered to allow for the final section of the South Seddon lead roof to be completed.

One thing leads to another.

The stonework on the gable ends of North Seddon, overlooking King Street, is also nearing completion with lightning conductors now in place.

Lower down, on the same side, individual stones are cut by hand as part of the restoration.

There are also bat boxes and new cast iron drainpipes in place.

Inside South Seddon, stairwells are being painted, new floors laid, lights fitted and ceilings installed, and there are tiles on the walls of the toilets.

Painting is underway in the Quad, and in the atrium, the concrete floor for the grand new function room is in place.

It was hot last week, yes, but progress on site continued unabated.

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru

Today we’re sharing the Aberdons Collection: 12 caricatures of Aberystwyth University lecturers dating from 1910.

The artist, Ap Rhobert (real name Howard Lloyd Roberts), was a well‑known figure in the area at the turn of the twentieth century. He was Art Master at Machynlleth County School and in later years, he ran a grocery and bakery business in his native village, Borth, and his shop windows displayed his caricatures.

Although the following newspaper extract refers to an exhibition of different work, it neatly summarises Ap Rhobert’s distinctive artistic style:

“Added to his undoubted skill as an artist, Mr Roberts has brought to bear on his work a keen sense of observation, and in most of his delineations has succeeded in bringing out, in a most effective way, either a striking mannerism or some other outstanding characteristic in the features or clothing of the person sketched. Mr Roberts is above all else a humourist, and it is safe to predict that none will enjoy his caricatures more than the subjects themselves.”

We look forward to shining a spotlight on many more leading figures in their fields through the exhibitions and events programme at Old College when it opens.

📷1- Professor Fleur
📷2- Professor Edward Edwards
📷3- Professor Edward Annwyl
📷4- Professor Jenkin Jones
📷5- Principal J F Roberts
📷6- Professor Thomas Arthur Levi
📷7- Professor T Stanley Roberts
📷8- unknown
📷9- unknown
📷10- Professor Hermann Ethe
📷11- Professor John Wilson Marshall

More stained glass

As work begins on the restoration of the stained-glass windows, it’s worth taking a moment to look through the square, round or arched window; you get to choose this time.

A detailed survey by leading restorers Holy Well Glass has identified the various types of glass and leadwork in each window, the condition and the restoration required.

They come in all shapes and sizes.

There are trefoil, cinquefoil and sexfoil panels, and double-cusped quatrefoils.

And the curved sea-facing Seddon room features a series of rose windows with eight small roundels and a larger central panel.

Easily overlooked from the outside, the colours seen from the inside are as vibrant as ever.

There are also fanlights and doors that feature the Prince of Wales’s feathers and overlooking the Quad, windows salvaged from the ruins of the fire of 1885.

Then there’s the Art Nouveau influence on the porch window that looks into the porter’s lodge.

Most will be restored in situ and any broken glass or perished lead replaced.

That means that we will have restored over 1000 windows as we breathe new life into Old College.

Oh, and there are gargoyles and grotesques as well, but they are for another day.

Cronfa Treftadaeth y Loteri Gen / National Lottery Heritage Fund - Cymru