18th Century Gates – Coode Conservation

English Heritage partially funded the conservation and restoration of these 18th century Grade 2* listed iron gates on the behalf of a private client. Treatment of these gates included both restoration of various elements and reinstatement of a coating system, but the most challenging aspect of working on these gates was access.

The gates are located in the middle of a forest with access via a circa 1 foot wide footpath, or down the side of the hill into which the grotto containing the gates is dug. This meant we had to design and construct a sledge system for transporting the gates up the hill and moving through the forest to our van. This worked very effectively and allowed treatment of the gates at our workshops rather than in-situ, meaning more extensive work could be undertaken in much better conditions than had the gates been worked on in place.

The location of the gates in a historic grotto on the side of a hill.
Unfortunately trespassers had seriously damaged the slam bars.
Many elements had been lost over the years, particularly the dog bars.
Very little evidence remained for what elements may have once filled the spaces in upper parts of the gates, so these areas were stabilised in their current state.
Detached elements found in the grotto included the remains of the original lock, broken pieces of the drop-bolts and one of the original hinges.
Where the original hinge had detached on one side of the gates, a later repair had been made which detracted from the original aesthetic of the gates. This was removed and the original hinge reinstated.
The other hinge was slightly wasted but otherwise stable.
As there was no direct vehicle access to the site, a sledge was designed and constructed to assist in extraction.
The gates were secured to the sledge and then transported up the hill via a pulley system.
Whilst excavating the sockets at the base of the gates we found 2 coins bearing George II's profile being used as spacers. These were documented and archived for safe keeping.
New dog bars were created to replace missing ones and riveted on so as to be in keeping with the original dog bars.
Where riveting was impractical due to access restrictions, new elements were screwed into position and then brazed for longevity.
All recovered elements were reinstated using a variety of techniques as appropriate to location and access.
A new locking system was created using as many of the original pieces as possible.
The gates in our paint workshop where they were coated with a traditional grey paint.
During re-installation the remaining hinge was coated with a rust stabiliser to prevent further wastage, and then painted to match the gates.
The fully completed gates.