Sandman
25-01-2009, 09:33 PM
No real history but did find this
Quarrying in Frosterley
Limestone has been quarried from the valley sides around Frosterley since the 12th
century but it was in the 1800s that the village became an important centre for
limestone quarrying. Limestone has many uses - as a roadstone, agricultural lime, for
flux in the iron and steel industry and for cement.
A special type of limestone is found in Frosterley; this fossil-rich stone, known as
Frosterley marble, can be polished to a high shine. Technically, it is not a proper marble.
Marble is formed when limestone is heated or subjected to pressure (or both) which
causes it to recrystallize into marble. This limestone has not been altered in this way. It
is the white fossils, from a tropical seabed of 325 million years ago, encapsulated
within the dark grained limestone which make this such a decorative stone.
The earliest known reference to the rock is via ‘Lambert the marble cutter’ who is
mentioned in the Bolden Book, a northern version of the Domesday Book
commissioned by Bishop Hugh de Puiset in 1183.
The most famous use of Frosterley marble is in Durham Cathedral. Here, the ceiling of
the Chapel of the Nine Altars is supported by slender columns of this unusual stone.
The columns would have been roughly cut, possibly from the Bollihope Burn river bed,
then transported to the cathedral building site. Here, industrious Norman monks would
have begun the laborious process of polishing, using blocks of sandstone lubricated
with water and leather cloths impregnated with fine sand and silt, to bring the stone
to a smooth decorative finish.
Locally, in Frosterley Parish Church (built in 1869) you can see a Frosterley Marble font
rescued from the church grounds at Gainsborough in Lincolnshire. It has been installed
as a result of a local public appeal.
A large piece of Frosterley marble in its raw state can be seen in the public car park
adjacent to the village hall. Broadwood Quarry still quarries Frosterley marble today.
on with the pictures
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1305.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1311.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1316.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1342.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1348.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1363.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1379.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1399.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1401.jpg
and finaly some panorama-o-graphs
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/quary.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/quarry2.jpg
a little bit of a comedy run in with security/owners with the geeeettttt oooorrrfff my land attitude - I took two minutes to advise the nice gentleman that his passenger breaklight was out
Quarrying in Frosterley
Limestone has been quarried from the valley sides around Frosterley since the 12th
century but it was in the 1800s that the village became an important centre for
limestone quarrying. Limestone has many uses - as a roadstone, agricultural lime, for
flux in the iron and steel industry and for cement.
A special type of limestone is found in Frosterley; this fossil-rich stone, known as
Frosterley marble, can be polished to a high shine. Technically, it is not a proper marble.
Marble is formed when limestone is heated or subjected to pressure (or both) which
causes it to recrystallize into marble. This limestone has not been altered in this way. It
is the white fossils, from a tropical seabed of 325 million years ago, encapsulated
within the dark grained limestone which make this such a decorative stone.
The earliest known reference to the rock is via ‘Lambert the marble cutter’ who is
mentioned in the Bolden Book, a northern version of the Domesday Book
commissioned by Bishop Hugh de Puiset in 1183.
The most famous use of Frosterley marble is in Durham Cathedral. Here, the ceiling of
the Chapel of the Nine Altars is supported by slender columns of this unusual stone.
The columns would have been roughly cut, possibly from the Bollihope Burn river bed,
then transported to the cathedral building site. Here, industrious Norman monks would
have begun the laborious process of polishing, using blocks of sandstone lubricated
with water and leather cloths impregnated with fine sand and silt, to bring the stone
to a smooth decorative finish.
Locally, in Frosterley Parish Church (built in 1869) you can see a Frosterley Marble font
rescued from the church grounds at Gainsborough in Lincolnshire. It has been installed
as a result of a local public appeal.
A large piece of Frosterley marble in its raw state can be seen in the public car park
adjacent to the village hall. Broadwood Quarry still quarries Frosterley marble today.
on with the pictures
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1305.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1311.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1316.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1342.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1348.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1363.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1379.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1399.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/IMG_1401.jpg
and finaly some panorama-o-graphs
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/quary.jpg
http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h320/landyloony/quary/quarry2.jpg
a little bit of a comedy run in with security/owners with the geeeettttt oooorrrfff my land attitude - I took two minutes to advise the nice gentleman that his passenger breaklight was out