18 BCD SPECIAL REPORT ON HISTORIC CHURCHES 31st ANNUAL EDITION The Bridge of Sighs crosses the Molendinar Ravine, joining the land of the living and the land of the dead, although the river is now culverted nine feet below the road. It is here that the full extent of the range of architecture is revealed on the horizon: an extraordinary mix of A-listed built heritage and landscape in this internationally important garden cemetery. The 37-acre site has more than 3,500 monuments created by some of Glasgow’s most famous architects. These include David Hamilton, Alexander ‘Greek’ Thomson, Charles Rennie Mackintosh and John Thomas Rochead. The monuments share space with a range of sculpture created by the most famous sculptors of their time, including James Pittendrigh Macgillivray, John Mossman and Handyside Ritchie. CONSERVATION WORK The A-listed landscape and built heritage both need immense amounts of maintenance. Nearly 20 years ago the founding members of FoGN realised that without immediate action this irreplaceable part of Glasgow’s history and skyline could be lost. The vandalism was unchecked and the air of neglect and abandonment was palpable. No-one was on site to look after the cemetery. Valuable assets were being stolen, destroyed or lost. Bronze portraits were missing. Most of the larger mausolea were in desperate need of conservation and restoration. The inscriptions on the headstones were fading with stone delaminating and lead letters stolen. The climate had affected many of the early monuments which are of a soft sandstone; that, combined with acid rain from the industrialisation of the city in the 19th century meant that a lot of the inscriptions had become unreadable. Once damaged or destroyed this information is lost forever and it is difficult, if not impossible, to restore or recreate. Concerned, FoGN reviewed and reported on its deteriorating condition to Glasgow City Council (GCC) and the two organisations began to work together in partnership to ensure the survival of one of the foremost historic assets and highly visited tourist destinations in the city. The charity began serious fund-raising, determined to find money to conserve and restore the built fabric while GCC appointed two specialists to look after the maintenance of the landscape. GCC formalised a Conservation Management Plan (CMP) in 2010, most of which has now been completed and a new CMP for future works is underway. Funding from GCC, Historic Environment Scotland and FoGN led to the conservation and restoration of the following: Black Mausoleum, King Mausoleum, Buchanan Mausoleum (£20k from FoGN), Hutchison Mausoleum, Turner Mausoleum, Aiken Mausoleum, Delta Mausoleum, The Façade and the Egyptian Vaults and its cast iron gate (£4k from Gift Aid from FoGN), the re-erection of hundreds of monuments and the re-establishment of paths. For the first restoration, FoGN received a donation of £14k for the magnificent cast iron gold leaf and black entrance gates. Glasgow City Council The magnificent black and gold main entrance gates were restored by the Friends of Glasgow Necropolis and GCC in 2011. (All photos: Ruth Johnston) The Egyptian Vaults before and after the restoration by FoGN and GCC in 2012 (GCC) funded the repairs to the stone gate posts and restored the lamps that stand on top of the posts. The gift aid from that donation also funded the restoration of the gate at the Egyptian Vaults. These gates needed a lot more than just repainting as the lower section of the gate was missing and had to be recast. Both gates were designed by architect David Hamilton and are two examples in the Necropolis of the cast iron work of the Eddington’s Phoenix Foundry. Through tour donations and fund raising, FoGN contributed £20k to the restoration of the Buchanan Sisters Mausoleum, which was match-funded by GCC and Historic Environment Scotland. The work here was extensive. Previous
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