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Adam
Lock
He was probably the master mason (architect) of the
western nave, and the same 'Master L' whose release
from his work at Wells was requested by the Abbot
of St. Augustine's Abbey (now Bristol Cathedral) to
design the Elder Lady Chapel there in around 1220.
Carvings in Bristol are so similar to those in the
Wells transepts, that it seems likely that Lock began
his mason's life as one of the early Wells carvers
in the 1180s. Apart from the increasingly elaborate
carvings of the western nave he may well have designed
the imposing north porch and the lower part of the
West Front, before his death in circa 1229.
Peter Bird FSA
The present cathedral architect is working as part
of an almost unbroken tradition and continuity. He
is responsible for the care and maintenance of the
cathedral fabric and for its improvement. Interestingly,
like two of his medieval predecessors, William Wynford
and Thomas of Whitney, he is also responsible for
the care of Winchester and Exeter Cathedrals.
The work to complete the cathedral church is never
finished. It is a living building. Alterations, adding
to and enhancing the fabric have been the preoccupation
of the cathedral architect from the beginning.
The developed philosophy for the care of the cathedral
fabric aims to retain and conserve as much as possible
of the medieval building - its stonework, carpentry
and decoration - without intervention and using conservative
repair techniques wherever possible. All fabric, and
areas where work is to be undertaken is recorded. In
addition, analysis and archaeological recording is automatic
wherever the fabric is to be disturbed. |
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