Sainte Apolline's Chapel St. Saviour's, Guernsey Conservation Plan
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Sainte Apolline's Chapel St. Saviour's, Guernsey Conservation Plan DRAFT Ref: 53511.03 December 2003 Wessex Archaeology Ste Apolline’s Chapel St Saviour’s Parish Guernsey Conservation Plan DRAFT Prepared for: States of Guernsey Heritage Committee Castle Cornet St Peter Port Guernsey GY1 1AU By: Wessex Archaeology Portway House Old Sarum Park Salisbury Wiltshire SP4 6EB In partnership with Carden & Godfrey Architects Environmental Design Associates Ltd AVN Conservation Consultancy & Dr John Mitchell Reference: 53511.03 18th December 2003 © The Trust for Wessex Archaeology Limited 2003 all rights reserved The Trust for Wessex Archaeology Limited is a Registered Charity No. 287786 Ste Apolline’s Chapel, St Saviour’s Parish, Guernsey Conservation Plan CONTENTS CHAPTER 1:INTRODUCTION.................................................................................1 1.1 Project Background ..........................................................................................1 1.2 Aims of the Conservation and Management Plan..........................................1 1.3 Methods..............................................................................................................2 CHAPTER 2:UNDERSTANDING .............................................................................7 2.1 Site Location......................................................................................................7 2.2 Development of the Chapel ..............................................................................7 2.3 The Condition of the Chapel and Wall Paintings ........................................77 2.4 The Landscape ................................................................................................86 2.5 Gaps in Knowledge .........................................................................................87 CHAPTER 3:SIGNIFICANCE AND VALUE ........................................................89 3.1 Introduction.....................................................................................................89 3.2 Statement of Overall Significance..................................................................91 3.3 Significance of Components...........................................................................96 CHAPTER 4:ISSUES AND POLICIES.................................................................113 4.1 Introduction...................................................................................................113 4.2 Planning Context...........................................................................................113 4.3 Character of the Chapel ...............................................................................116 4.4 The Wall Paintings........................................................................................118 4.5 Condition of the Building.............................................................................122 4.6 Environmental Conditions ...........................................................................131 4.7 Management of the Building........................................................................137 4.8 The Grounds..................................................................................................138 4.9 Preservation of the Archaeological Resource.............................................140 List of Appendices Appendix 1 : Archaeological and Historical Background Appendix 2 : Cartographic Sources Appendix 3 : Late Fourteenth Century Wall Paintings Appendix 4 : La Société Guernsiaise Report and Transactions 1971, J. Maiden Appendix 5 : Letter from Brandt Potter Hare Partnership 31st March 1971 Appendix 6 : Summary of letters outlining the problems of damp within the Chapel following the 1973 - 1978 restoration works Appendix 7 : Summary of Past Treatments to Wall Paintings Appendix 8 : Environmental Data from Ste Apolline’s Chapel Appendix 9 : Ste Apolline’s Chapel Heating Appendix 10 : Archaeological Observations of the Opening Up 19th September 2003 SUMMARY Wessex Archaeology, in partnership with Carden and Godfrey Architects, Dr John Mitchell, AVN Conservation Consultancy and Environmental Design Associates Ltd, were commissioned by the States of Guernsey Heritage Committee to produce a Conservation and Management Plan on Ste Apolline’s Chapel in Guernsey. The Chapel is a small granite late fourteenth century single celled building. As a building of its form and date it is a unique survival in the Channel Islands. The Chapel contains the remains of medieval wall paintings depicting the Last Supper and possibly Christ washing the feet of the Apostles. These constitute one of the two substantial remaining examples of medieval wall painting in Guernsey, the other being in the Castel Parish Church. The Guernsey Council of Churches restored the Site during the 1970s as a Chapel of Unity. This work included the installation of under floor heating, lighting and the reconstruction of a bellcote and replacement roof covering. Damp has been a continuing problem and there is now widespread concern about the condition of the building and the wall paintings. The Plan found that the Chapel is in good condition structurally, however the wall paintings are at risk of further deterioration from the fluctuating environment within the building. This is occurring as a result of uncontrolled heating, high levels of humidity caused by rising damp, water ingress and a lack of air circulation. In order to fully understand the effect of these and external factors on the Chapel and its wall paintings, it is recommended that monitoring of the environment inside and outside the building envelope is undertaken for twelve months prior to remedial works commencing. The Plan recommends that drainage around the Chapel should be extended and improved and the addition of eaves gutters and rainwater pipes should be considered. The exterior pointing of the walls is in a late 1920’s cementitious mortar reducing evaporation to the outside, its removal could be damaging to both the masonry and the wall paintings. Repointing work should therefore be left for the time being. It is recommended that the lead upstand mastic in the gable gutters is regularly checked and replaced as necessary. The 1970’s York stone floor with a cement mortar prevents evaporation encouraging dampness to spread up the adjacent wall plaster. It is recommended that the floor is re-laid and pointed in lime mortar with a perimeter channel adjacent to the walls, filled with gravel. This would provide an opportunity to install a controlled heating system. Replacement of internal plaster and other decorative measures should only be carried out when the problem of rising damp has been controlled. Although the 1970’s Cotswold stone roof covering is generally watertight, dissatisfaction with it has centred on its authenticity and the variation of roof and gable pitches. Consideration should be given to replacing the roof with a traditional solid stone roof, similar in appearance to that on the Chapel prior to the 1970’s works. Aesthetic improvements, such as furniture and lighting (which is also damaging the wall paintings) have also been outlined. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Conservation and Management Plan was commissioned by the States of Guernsey Heritage Committee. The assistance of its staff, in particular that of Sandy Hamilton, Historic Sites Manager and Mark Thornton, Historic Sites Assistant, is gratefully acknowledged. The Committee’s Independent Support Consultant, Paul Drury, of The Paul Drury Partnership, is also thanked for his help and advice during the course of the project. This Conservation and Management Plan was produced by Wessex Archaeology in partnership with: • Richard Andrews of Carden and Godfrey Architects (Architecture, fabric of the Chapel) • Dr John Mitchell, School of World Art and Museology, University of East Anglia (Wall Paintings) • Virginia Neal of AVN Conservation Consultancy (Recommendations for environmental survey, condition of the wall paintings) • Marylla Hunt of Environmental Design Associates Ltd (Landscape) • Richard Samways (translation of Norman French) The Conservation and Management Plan Team would like to acknowledge the help given by the following people: • Dr Darryl Ogier, Island Archivist, and Nathan Coyde, Assistant Archivist, at the Island Archives Service, for their assistance with the Ste Apolline’s archive, supplying documents for translation, answering numerous queries and assisting with historic interpretation • Heather Sebire, Archaeology Officer, and other staff for supplying information from the Sites and Monuments Record; Heather Sebire and Mark Wood for discussing the results of the archaeological watching brief on the test pit in front of the south wall on site • Faith Rose, Forward Planning Officer, Island Development Committee, for her help with the interpretation of Guernsey Planning Law • Alan Ritchie, Landscape & Countryside Officer at the Island Development Committee for supplying a written report on the garden at Ste Apolline • Martin Crozier, Museums Operations Manager, for his assistance with the digital mapping • Matt Harvey, Social History Officer, for his help with environmental monitoring at the Chapel • Elizabeth Harris at Priaulx Library for assistance with research and supplying photographs • Alan Howell, Natural History Officer at Guernsey Museums for his assistance with the search for illustrations of the Chapel • Louise Cain, Guernsey Tourist Board, for supplying information on the promotion