Lost in…History

You never know where stone carving will take you. Recently I’ve been lucky enough to work on a series of commissions arising from a long standing interest in local history.

Maritime Museum (Maryport) : Door Surround Corbel

Completed 2024

A chance visit to Maryport gave me the idea of combining my interest in history and my passion for stone carving. 

The town’s quayside church is being converted into a maritime museum and, while there, I noticed that the corbels supporting the door surround were very weathered, one almost beyond recognition; following some discussion it was agreed that I would carve a replacement, and the completed carving will be ready to set in place in Spring 2025.

The photos below record the project from start to finish.

Roman Bathhouse Excavations (Carlisle) : Replica Roman Head

Completed October 2024

Change encounters often lead to interesting collaborations and so it was in September 2024 when I visited Roman Bathhouse excavations at Carlisle Cricket Club. I had the good fortune to talk to volunteers and archaeologists about the two large Roman heads discovered in 2023 and, within half an hour, it was agreed that I’d carve a two-thirds size replica of one the heads. 

I enjoy every carving project but this has to be one of the best. The stone I carved is a piece of dressed Roman stone from the site (from an unstratified layer) and the carving was entirely completed on site; the very place the originals were carved some 1700 years ago!