Puddled Wrought Iron
All the
sculptures in the Henry Cort Millennium Exhibition use wrought
iron. Wrought iron has been used in buildings, ship building and
in making weapons from the earliest days of civilisation. These
irons of antiquity are now known collectively as 'charcoal iron',
and its use, for example for door furniture was commonplace in
Roman times. There are wrought iron railings in Westminster Abbey
from the 13th century, but the great age of British ironwork for
buildings known as the "English" style began at the end
of the 17th century. A French fashion for the Baroque style in
gates and railings swept the country houses of Britain following
the import of craftsman by William and Mary, and the greater part
of our national stock of good ironwork dates from the early years
of the 18th century.
In the shipbuilding industry, especially for the English navy, domestic production of wrought iron was of such poor quality that it relied upon imports from Sweden and Russia. Henry Cort's developments which he patented in 1783 and 1784 enabled imports to cease. Indeed by 1863 the United Kingdom was the largest producer of puddled wrought iron in Europe.
After the introduction of cast iron and mild steel, wrought iron and the craft skills associated with it gradually disappeared until the last ironworks ceased production in 1974.
However, since 1982 limited supplies of puddled wrought iron derived by recycling older material has been made available. Subsequent years have seen a steady increase in demand as the blacksmiths of Britain learn again the old skills. These are all on view in the sculptures of the Henry Cort Millennium Exhibition. They are mainly made of puddled wrought iron handworked in the forge. Forge welding, riveting and collaring are used to join elements together and require a high degree of blacksmithing skill. Modern metal techniques of electric/gas welding and brazing have been largely avoided.
With thanks to Chris Topp and The Real Wrought Iron Company at Thirsk, North Yorkshire.
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