Portland Stone - Portland Stone Buildings

Portland Stone Buildings

Portland's freestone has almost certainly been used as a building material since Roman times. The many well crafted Roman sarcophagi (stone coffins and matching lids, hewn from single large blocks of Portland stone) that have been unearthed locally over the years, testify to the skill of their makers.

The earliest known building to be constructed using Portland stone is Rufus Castle at Church Ope Cove, Portland. The original structure was probably built in around 1080, rebuilt in around 1259 and rebuilt yet again in about 1450 which is the likely date of the walls seen today. The first known Portland stone quarries were situated on the north eastern coast of the Isle, close to Rufus Castle, where huge landslips made the stone more easily accessible, and the proximity of the sea allowed the quarried stone blocks to be moved over relatively large distances by barge.

Portland stone was used to build the Palace of Westminster in 1347, the Tower of London in 1349 and the first stone London Bridge in 1350. Exeter Cathedral and Christchurch Priory, also constructed during the 14th Century are built of Portland stone. Its superb characteristics have ensured a popularity amongst masons and architects that has endured ever since. The East side of Buckingham Palace, the official London residence of Queen Elizabeth II, including the balcony, was faced with Portland stone, first in 1854 and again in 1913. The Victoria Memorial is also made of it.

Inigo Jones (1573–1652) used Portland stone to build the Banqueting Hall in Whitehall in 1620. Sir Christopher Wren used nearly one million cubic feet to rebuild St. Paul's Cathedral and many other minor churches after the Great Fire of London in 1666. All of the stone used by Wren was transported by sailing barge from Portland to the centre of London via the Thames. Wren's widespread use of Portland Stone, firmly established it as London's "local stone" and as one of the best loved British building stones. Other famous London buildings constructed of Portland stone are The British Museum (1753), Somerset House (1792), the General Post Office (1829), the Bank of England, the Mansion House and the National Gallery.

Portland stone is prevalent in Manchester despite the historical preferred use of hard-wearing materials, such as Burmantofts and sandstone to resist the harsh industrial environment. Portland stone was mostly used in Manchester during the 1930s. Manchester buildings with Portland stone exterior include 100 King Street (1935), Arkwright House (1937), St. James Buildings (1912), Manchester Central Library (1934), Kendals Milne (1939) and Sunlight House (1932).

Two of Liverpool's Three Graces, the Cunard Building and the Port of Liverpool Building, are clad in Portland stone which surrounds their reinforced concrete frames.

Most of the important civic and administrative buildings which survive from 18th century Dublin, known then as "the second city of the Empire", are of Portland stone, including City Hall, Dublin (1779), the Irish Houses of Parliament (1767), the Custom House (1791) and the General Post Office (Dublin) (1818).

The Nottingham Council House, completed in 1929, is also built with Portland Stone, as are the public buildings in Cardiff's civic centre.

Architect Charles Holden significantly used the stone in his major commissions of the 1920s and 30s including Senate House and 55 Broadway, the home of the London Underground.

After the Second World War (1939–1945) the bombed out centres of many English towns and cities, such as Plymouth, Bristol, Coventry and London were reconstructed using vast facades of Portland Stone.

Although Oxford typically uses oolitic limestone in its buildings, the Ashmolean Museum has been refurbished using a large amount of Portland stone.

Portland Stone has also been used across the world. Examples include the UN building in New York, the National Gallery in Dublin and the Casino Kursaal in Belgium.

More recent projects include the new BBC Broadcasting House in London which won the ‘New Build (Modern Non-Load-bearing Stone) Award' in the 2006 Natural Stone Awards.