13th October 2011

WEYMOUTH: Dry stone wall restored to its former glory

IT had been built around the time of the Boer War at the end of the Victorian era but had literally fallen on hard times.

A pile of jumbled rock was all that remained of a 20ft section of dry stone wall on a windswept hill above Langton Herring.

Dry stone walls were being built in this country before the Romans arrived and their structure created without mortar or cement means the wall can settle in on itself as the years go by and actually get stronger.

The mound of rocks caused by collapse of a section of the wall didn’t deter members of the Dorset branch of the Dry Stone Walling Association who spent two days making order out of chaos as they restored the wall to its former glory.

Their first key job was to rescue lichen-covered coping stones and put them to one side to be installed last on top of the wall when it had been rebuilt. Then they tracked down and graded other fallen stones into groups according to size.

The large foundation stones were dug out last and put closest to foundation trench which was carefully redug to form a clear base.

Branch secretary Sally Fielding said: “We then put the foundation stones back in a dovetail fashion with any gaps filled with smaller stones for strength.

“Once the base was finished we moved on to the first lift where the biggest stones are put at the bottom of the wall with joints carefully covered by the stones above them. It’s a bit like laying bricks.

“Then we put through stones in the wall from one side to the other to help spread the weight and to tie both sides of the wall together.

“You keep on like this gradually using smaller and smaller stones until the finished height is reached, each side of the wall being slightly angled towards the top in a narrowing action.

“When the top is reached we replace the coping stones and the wall is as good as new.”

Anyone who would like to learn more about dry stone walling or who would like to join the branch can contact Sally on 01305-871403 or email her at [email protected]

PICTURE 1: Restoring the wall

PICTURE 2: Preparing for the second day’s work

PICTURE 3: Salling Fielding places a stone