posted 04-04-2006 07:05 PM            

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Just to let you know.
my dissertation is due in 21 days and it is al very hectic at the moment. the diss has changed tack so many times it is scary to see where it began all those months ago, anyway it is now looking at the camps of conservationists v stylistic restorers, or What John Earl called it, "over restoration" . the camps polarized around Wyatt and Le Duc in the one camp and Morris, Ruskin and Lubbock in the other, it is looking at the rise of conservation from the fad of over restoration. The beginning of SPAB and how this affected the rebuilding/restoring of Pembroke castle in 1928. Remember that SPAB had been established 40 years by this point, the ancients monument act had been around 45 years and although it didn’t become as powerful as it is today too quickly, it is still amazing to think that no one argued against the restoration of the castle. I know it also takes time for these movements to spill out from London and Pembrokeshire is a long way away.

The second part of it is looking at visitors views on authenticity! does it matter that the castle has been rebuilt. Academics and professional say yes.
visitors tend to be more interested in the price of the tea and if the sun is shining