Thornton Hough Village War Memorial.

The limestone memorial in the village of Thornton Hough, having been moved to its present position some years ago, was in need of cleaning and sprucing up.  The small bronze placque had a small amount of corrosion which needed removing and rewaxing.  There were algal and lichen growths on the plinth, along with a variety of weeds and different mortars.

The bronze was cleaned and selectively re-patinated then waxed.  Because of thesmall  scaffold planks on the plinth it is very evident the amount of grime that was removed during the clean – obviously the remaining marks were subsequently cleaned though they act as a reminder as to how different the final result was.  A picture of ‘work in progress’ on the monument has also been included to show just how dramatic even a relatively simple steam clean can be.

The limestone surface in some places had been damaged by the  growth of lichen – sometimes these growths protect the surface but in htis case they had slightly etched the surface of the stone and when removed tended to leave light patches.  Lichens can grow on the surface of stone or inside stone.  Usually they are an aesthetic issue but in some cases, as in Thornton Hough they can cause some damage.  This may be from slight acid produced by the lichen or by providing a ‘home’ for acid rain or other more invasive species.

Thanks must be given to the school for their help with the water supply.