The Changing Façade of Magdalen College, Oxford: Reconstructing Long-Term Soiling Patterns from Archival Photographs and Traffic Records

Abstract

Most studies in the area of stone soiling and decay research focus on relatively short periods, usually less than ten years. This study attempts to consider changes over a century using archival photographs, and to relate them to changes in traffic-related air pollution as recorded in surveys and monitoring data. The façade of Magdalen College is an often-photographed component of Oxford's cultural heritage. Its location adjacent to Magdalen Bridge, which is a major traffic artery into Oxford, makes it vulnerable to traffic-related pollution. Traffic surveys reveal a recent decline in traffic, dating from around the time of the Oxford Transport Strategy, only partly matched by nitrogen dioxide reductions. The photographic records show the façade of Magdalen College to be blackened well before traffic became a serious threat. The study illustrates the problems of the archival record, but also its value in providing some insight into long-term changes in air pollution and the consequences for cultural heritage.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Mary Thornbush

Biography

Mary J. Thornbush Hon BSc, MSc

Originally from Toronto, Canada, where she studied fluvial archaeogeomorphology, Mary Thornbush is a doctoral candidate in environmental geomorphology at the School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford. Her research examines the weathering of historical limestone in central Oxford and the impacts of atmospheric gases from traffic pollution.

Heather Viles

Heather A. Viles MA (Cantab), MA, DPhil (Oxon)

Heather Viles is Reader in Geomorphology at the University of Oxford and has carried out research on stone decay and rock weathering in a variety of environments over the past twenty years. She is co-author (with Andrew Goudie) of Salt Weathering Hazards (John Wiley, 1997) and co-editor (with Richard Prikryl) of Understanding and Managing Stone Decay (Karolinum Press, 2002), as well as author of over 60 peer-reviewed papers in international journals and edited volumes.