A forgotten estate bridge:
Crathes Castle Bridge
Banchory, Aberdeenshire
The bridge at Crathes Castle is an early 19th-century single segmental arch in sandstone rubble with dressed voussoirs, listed Category C(S). It had fallen out of use and was being pulled apart by vegetation. For the National Trust for Scotland we consolidated and repaired it.
The challenge
Root-bearing vegetation had taken hold across the structure, displacing masonry and loosening the harl, and sections had been lost.
Our solution
We treated and removed the roots and soil, consolidated the masonry and rebuilt lost sections using recovered rubble laid in hot lime mortar. Hollow areas of harl were consolidated by injecting lime putty, patch repairs were made to match the existing, and the bridge was finished with limewash.
Outcomes
Structure consolidated
Root damage removed and the masonry stabilised.
Original material reused
Lost sections rebuilt in recovered rubble and hot lime.
Historic harl kept
Hollow harl grouted and patched rather than stripped.
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