2016 CON JUNE FINAL LOW RES PDF with links

CONSTRUCTION WORLD

JUNE

2016

Repairs and maintenance

to the Castle of Good

Hope are being carried

out by specialists in the

construction, renovation

and recycling of buildings,

GVK-Siya Zama. These

are being done under

the expert eye of award-

winning architect Dr Gabriel

Fagan and his wife Dr Gwen

Fagan and with the help of

Martine Robinson, a long

standing staff member.

PROJECTS AND CONTRACTS

The couple has been involved with

the restoration of the Castle and

subsequent repair projects since

1968 – making overseeing the

preservation of South Africa’s oldest building

their lives’ work.

GVK-Siya Zama project manager Rupert

Rademan says, “The way the team from

Gabriel Fagan Architects have communicated

the repair and maintenance scope of work

to us has been amazing. They share their

knowledge and years of research, taking the

time to explain the history behind each room

we renovate. The Fagans have challenged us

to work with materials and methodologies not

commonly used in the last 100 years and are

well equipped to answer any questions raised

by our construction team. Their expertise has

enabled us to ensure that all that the history is

perfectly captured throughout the building.”

Of working with GVK-Siya Zama, Gwen

states, “The members of the team are doing

fantastic work. They are handling the intricate

repairs as well as the preservation of histor-

ical elements very well.” She hopes that the

Castle will be maintained for future genera-

tions to enjoy.

Fagan’s career spans more than six

decades. Gwen, who was originally a medical

doctor, changed professions and joined her

husband’s architectural firm in 1969 as a

historical researcher and landscape planner.

In 1995, she received her PhD in landscape

architecture. Between them, the nonagenar-

ians have three honorary doctorates.

Overwhelming responsibility

According to Gabriel, “The conservation of

a citadel like the Castle is a creative process

involving the overwhelming responsibility of

intervening in a prime historical artefact.”

Regarding the restoration procedures

that have taken place over the years, he

explains that it was essential for the building

to first be assessed for its cultural, architec-

tural and social value. Its rarity value also

had to be judged by comparing it with similar

buildings both nationally and internationally.

This saw the Fagan’s visiting Mauritius, the

Seychelles and Sri Lanka where the history of

the fortifications matched that at the Cape.

The building was then examined for

further clues to its history. This included an

examination of the walls, roofs and ceiling to

assess the safety and value of existing struc-

tures. The doors, windows and 87 different

fireplaces were also measured and recorded

to produce accurate plans and schedules.

With numerous additions having been

made to the building over the past three

centuries, the Fagans were challenged with

the decision of what to remove and what to

retain. Items that were demolished included a

toilet block in the inner courtyard dating back

to the Second World War, derelict saw-tooth

buildings used for storage and parking

together with a fig tree that almost obscured

the famous Castle bell tower and was swal-

lowing historic sentry boxes and blocking the

sewers in the front courtyard.

Recreation of elements

Some elements had to be recreated. For

instance, the piers on the gateway leading to

the Castle entrance were crowned by lions,

with an arched lamp support between them.

However, a collapsing flagpole brought the

whole lot down, with the lions shattering into

small fragments. The remains were boxed to

avoid further damage and shipped, along with

the pier capitals, to a special workshop where

efforts were made to determine the origin of

the clay. Specialist restorer, Jan Corewijn,

reassembled the lions, made models and

recast them. Today they rest safely in the

Castle’s museum whilst replicas recline on the

piers at the entrance.

Additionally, the gable on the inner side

of the entrance, built by Governor Simon

van der Stel in 1684, was struck and severely

cracked by a lightning bolt. Fagan visited the

Earl of Balcarras in Scotland to inspect the

notebooks of former Castle resident, Lady

Anne Barnard. A panorama done by her in the

late 18

century clearly showed the figures

of the gods Neptune and Mercury upon the

gable. These were reconstructed and the

surfaces painted as Lady Anne had depicted

them. A similar procedure was undertaken to

restore the weather vane above the bell tower

which today, with its gold leaf paint, glints

now and again in the sun.

During the course of the repair work, a

number of hidden historical and architectural

treasures were uncovered. Amongst these

were a kitchen in the curtain wall between the

Leerdam and Buuren bastions, paintings on

interior walls, the Dolphin Pool with its foun-

tain and surrounding balustrade and pillars.

Most of the work on the Castle has

consisted of the stabilisation of the original

structure which had deteriorated as a result

of years of neglect.

One of the most challenging aspects of

the repair process has been the refurbishment

of the moat which had been filled and turned

into a garden early in the 20

century. “Having

seen the beautiful moat around the Dutch

fort at Jaffna in Sri Lanka, we persuaded the

Department of Public Works to restore the

Castle moat,” says Faganl. Archaeologists

were called in to identify the original stone

walls. Mountain water, which originally filled

the moat but was then flowing into the sea,

was diverted from the Capel Sloot (a narrow

water channel constructed for irrigation)

under Darling Street and is now used to

irrigate the plants on the banks. In addition,

specific vegetation was planted to keep the

water clean and, with advice from the Depart-

ment of Fisheries, fish were added. “This

worked so well that the moat has become an

asset to Cape Town,” shares Fagan.

Another difficulty encountered was the

installation of modern requirements, such

as the establishment of access points for

wheelchair-bound visitors, without impacting

on the sensitive environment.

“There are many reasons why we refur-

bish, recycle or restore old buildings, ranging

from economics to simple nostalgia or in the

case of the Castle, severe structural deteri-

oration. However, the greatest value of old

buildings for all of us is that we can identify

ourselves through the continuous thread of

our communal culture with previous genera-

tions and so by better understanding them,

reaffirm our own values,” concludes Fagan.

EXPERTS

oversee

REPAIRS

C STR CTI

J E

2016