Work starts to uncover historic Guild Chapel murals

WORK is now beginning on the painstaking conservation of Stratford-upon-Avon’s rare and precious medieval wall paintings.

The murals adorn the walls inside The Guild Chapel in the town centre, painting a picture of life and belief 500 years ago, in the time and town that Shakespeare was born into.

They are said to be amongst the finest surviving in all of Europe.

And the 750-year-old chapel is now at the centre of a major project backed by a £100,000 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) aiming to both conserve and showcase the wall paintings.

They were covered with layers of limewash in 1563 on orders given to John Shakespeare, the playwright’s father, during the Reformation.

They were rediscovered in the 19 and then 20 centuries, and are described as being of major national significance.

And this week expert conservators arrived at the chapel to climb the scaffolding now erected inside, and begin their work.

It will remain open each day throughout the conservation process – set for completion in late November – giving visitors the chance to see the conservators in action.

The two best-preserved wall paintings are the subject of the initial work now underway. These are the large ornate scene of ‘the Doom’ which can be seen above the Chancel arch, and the ‘Allegory on Death’ – also known as the ‘Death Poem’ which is found on the west wall.

As well as the remains of layers of limewash used to cover the paintings up, they are partially obscured by later layers of paint and a preservative layer of wax (a common conservation technique in the early 20th century).

This and the paint that has flaked off over time have combined to render much of the painting dull and ‘muddy’.

Conservators from the Perry Lithgow Partnership will now undertake the painstaking process of removing these overlayers to reveal and then consolidate the flaking medieval paint underneath.

Stratford Town Trust, custodian of the Guild Chapel, is seeking further funding to unveil and conserve more paintings.

The legend of St George and the Dragon, the Martyrdom of St Thomas Beckett and an elaborate sequence depicting the Dance of Death are all hidden within the Chapel’s walls.

Project Manager Cate Statham, of Hawkes Edwards and Cave Conservation Architects, said: “We have been thrilled to be involved with the shapel for such a long time and especially now to see these fabulous paintings getting the attention they deserve.

"Our principal architect, Trevor Edwards, has been working in partnership with Tobit Curteis and Associates to monitor and document the paintings for the past 15 years and it is now really exciting to be beginning the work we have been hoping to carry out for so long.”