The number conundrum



      We drive past this particular Methodist Church every time that we go to visit our favourite butcher and the short column of three numerical dates fascinates us.
      The building was topped out in 1907 as the plaque in the apex says but what about the significance of 1833 and 1860, and the fact that all the numerals get larger as the short column descends. Perhaps it's a typographic device to show the passage of time, the trouble is I don't have the time to decode it. On the other hand maybe it's all about rebuilds and extensions, or perhaps period modernisations?


      The building has now been converted into a home and very smart it looks too but we do love all those small details that the Victorians so enjoyed working on, even the ventilator or air-bricks are beautifully produced and right in style. The letterform differences, the sizing of words that seems totally random but we're sure it isn't, more research needed.
      Never mind it's all part of life's rich tapestry, as people say. Or it's the Da Vinci Code in West Norfolk.
      That's it, sorted. The answer to the conundrum is near.






Comments

  1. It is interesting John. Perhaps it has to do with as you said remodel or upgrades. Or perhaps DaVinci...

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  2. That brick grillwork for the gable vent is interesting. Unless the building is very tiny, the free air space allowed would be severely inadequate. On the other hand, the original windows were likely drafty and the roof covering not continuous. That would ventilate the building and control condensation. BTW, what's the roof covering today?

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  3. The roof covering is the original Welsh slate, it was removed and a membrane added for insulation and, I suppose waterproofing, then re-used with new lead flashing. We live in an old Baptist Church and ouroof is slate with membranes but the roof space is colossal. I could d o with some skylights to run my telescope through!

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  4. Telescope? Not when Dawn's about TT

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  5. BB, there's nothing like a sharper view.

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