Conserving War Memorials Case Study: The Replacement of Missing Bronze Elements

This case study describes the treatment undertaken to address missing bronze elements on the Grade-II listed Bootle War Memorial. This issue is unfortunately fairly common on outdoor bronzes, as elements are often cast separately and fixed in place with ferrous fixings. These fixings can fail over time, which results in the loss or theft of these vulnerable parts. It is important that informed decisions are made to arrive at a specification for treatment that is both ethical and achievable, and which ensures the future security of bronze elements on a memorial.

This guidance is intended for those designing, specifying and undertaking conservation and repair work to free standing war memorials, such as architects, building surveyors, structural engineers, project managers, contractors, craftspeople, and conservators. It will also be of interest to those responsible for making decisions, such as local authority conservation officers, custodians or volunteer groups. It also indicates where to get further help and advice.

This guidance forms part of a series of resources produced by Historic England, to coincide with the centenary of the First World War. This series covers the overall approach to caring for these memorials, as well as some of the more poorly understood technical aspects. It includes:

• guidance on how to record, repair, conserve, maintain and protect these unique monuments for future generations: The Conservation, Repair and Management of War Memorials and Conservation and Management of War Memorial Landscapes
• short technical advice notes covering inscriptions, structural problems and repairs and maintenance
• case studies on conservation options for specific war memorial issues
• films on technical aspects of war memorial conservation