[Bell Historians] Bell frame for sale (of no practical use)

[Chris Pickford]

This case was referred to in the recent Keltek Trust report in the RW as an instance of conservation stalemate - permission having been granted for removal, but only on conditions that are virtually impossible to fulfil.

Saundby apart (and George is right to refer to the old frames that are preserved there), very few places - even specialist museums for timber structures - have shown the faintest inclination to accept old bellframes which are bulky and low on interest to the general public.

Despite my interest in and appreciation of old frames, I can only feel sympathy for the parish in being driven to such extremes as a desperate advertisement in the Church Times to try and find a way through this imposed impasse. The likelihood of a positive response to the advert is remote - so what next? The "dead hand" of conservation prevails and the unusable old remains by default? Is this all that the future holds for the Church? Who is letting this happen - and why? At what point will the authorities concede that relocation to a museum environment is not a viable option?

These are serious issues - and this is a case where the "clock will be stopped" in order to preserve an old installation without any possibility of future use unless a solution is found.

I'm sure I'm not alone - even among historians and archaeologists - in feeling that we have reached the stage where the emphasis on conservation has gone too far. Far too far - and the time has surely come for positive efforts to redress the balance

CJP           
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