Bunhill Fields Burial Ground, and restoring Bayes' Memorial

Bunhill Fields Burial Ground contains 2,330 surviving memorials, most from the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries and it is protected by the Government as a 'Listed Building' (of special architectural or historic interest) and by the Local Planning Authority, the London Borough of Islington, as a Conservation Area. In addition, the site has been protected and managed by the City of London since the late nineteenth century under the powers vested in it by a private Act of Parliament.

The City of London Corporation, which is the Local Authority for the world's leading financial and related business services centre, owns and manages some 350 historic properties in and around London, some for operational purposes, such as the mediaeval Guildhall, but many for no other purpose than to give pleasure and enhance the cultural life of Londoners and visitors to London. Bunhill Fields Burial Ground falls into the latter category and it provides a greatly appreciated and well used recreational facility, a place of quiet contemplation and also a commemoration of both the place of the Nonconformist faith in the history of the nation and the lives of the many great citizens, such as the authors John Bunyan ('The Pilgrim's Progress') and Daniel Defoe ('Robinson Crusoe'), the writer, artist and poet William Blake, scientists and the Minister of the Methodist Church and great statistician, Thomas Bayes.

The City is undertaking a phased programme of repairs of all surviving memorials, but welcomes partnerships with individuals, families, organisations, and businesses. While the recent works to the Thomas Bayes memorial were being undertaken, my staff also let a parallel City of London funded contract for works to some of the other memorials in that part of the site, to a value of £5,200. Further, they are proposing to undertake more works to that area this year and subject to any other priorities that might arise, to focus works there for the next few years, until the restoration of that particular fenced section of the site is completed.

Funding for these works is modest at the moment, although we hope to seek grant-aid from British funding agencies for an accelerated programme of restoration in due course. Consequently, while we continue with the restoration programme, there is no funding available for regular maintenance. This will not be a problem for the next five years or so, but eventually a planned maintenance programme will be essential if the present investment is not to be wasted.

The Bayes memorial tends to suffer as a result of its location under a large Plane tree, because the dripping rainwater and the shade of its leaves encourage green algael growth and the subsequent growth of mosses. Ironically, the algael staining is unsightly, but causes no significant harm to the stone, whereas the moss is relatively attractive, but does cause damage to the stone.

Whenever we carefully clean and repair a memorial there is a risk of it looking rather bright, such that it can look 'overclean'. This can be ameliorated somewhat by undertaking works to a group of memorials and that is what has been achieved on this occasion. In most parts of the site this brightness soon fades and the memorials develop an acceptable patina of age that suits the special character of Bunhill Fields Burial Ground. I think that we shall have to monitor the area of the Thomas Bayes memorial and attempt to tailor a maintenance programme that strikes the right balance and ensures that its long-term appearance remains satisfactory.

E.T. Hartill, The City Surveyor, City of London, 31 May 2007.