100 YEARS OF HERITAGE SANDSTONE RESTORATION WITH GOSFORD QUARRIES
06 Oct 2022
Around our nation, and especially in our major cities, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane among them, the vision of our architecture is filled with sandstone walls, cladding, capping, pyramid capping, profiled sandstone, decorative pieces, rosettes, quoins, the list goes on.
Sydney Town Hall - Piles Creek Cream Sandstone Colour Range
The contrast of heritage and contemporary buildings in the Sydney visual scape is now something we admire and celebrate. We must pay homage here to Sydney City Council. Governor Philip Tower was the first contemporary use of sandstone (a sandstone veneer instead of a pre-cast concrete panel). In reaction to it, the Council realised just how much sandstone was a part of the identity of Sydney.
“Sandstone is warm, inviting, and empathetic; everyone seems to empathise with sandstone and embrace it and love and take pleasure from it.”
Gary Hargreaves, Gosford Quarries
Woven into the history of these buildings is sandstone, and woven into their fabric is the heart, love and industry of the masons and experts of Gosford Quarries, reaching as far back as the early 1920s in sandstone projects and to contemporary Australia today.
Gosford Quarries has become the leading heritage sandstone restoration company, premier supplier of bespoke heritage pieces, and a sandstone company that has become an expert adviser on sandstone restoration projects with the remarkable 100-year history of knowledge & experience this company has gained over its centennial operation (1922-2022).
Gosford Quarries' name has become synonymous with trust and the highest calibre of quality for not only sandstone supply for sandstone heritage restoration, but capability, advice, manufacture and sometimes installation. Mostly, though, there are installation companies who handle the actual heritage restoration instals of the stone.
In the 1980s, the Museum of Sydney was supplied and fitted with a new sandstone cladding by Gosford Quarries.
From St Mary’s Cathedral to the GPO, The Sydney Town Hall, the QVB in Sydney, the War Memorial of Canberra to Parliament of Victoria, Cathedrals in Tasmania and Marble Hill Governors house restorations in Adelaide, Gosford Quarries has supplied heritage sandstone to some of the most iconic historic buildings in Australia’s history.
Our singular capability to quarry onsite, our latest sandstone technologies and state-of-the-art 3D machinery allow incredibly precise matching of the shape and finishes of sandstone pieces required in heritage restoration. Heritage pieces are scanned from originals or produced from advanced CNC programs (such as CAD and Rhino), cut at our factories, and often hand-finished in bespoke heritage sandstone finishes.
The vast experience with historic buildings and extensive I.P. held by our senior expert staff and architectural draftsman have made Gosford Quarries top of mind to partner in countless historic building restorations over the last 100 years.
Our highly skilled banker masons at Gosford Quarries are also heavily involved in many heritage sandstone restorations. Some heritage sandstone finishes require human ingenuity and skill that only such a highly skilled mason can provide. In fact, it is often mistakenly assumed that historical sandstone finishes cannot be accurately and faithfully reproduced in the present day. So much so any contemporary rendering of a heritage finish is basically indistinguishable from the finishes of the older sandstone blocks they have replaced.
Popular and historical sandstone finishes are sparrow peck, convict picked, bush-hammered, boasted and chiselled.
In fact, the famous ‘Yellow-Block’ sandstone of Sydney has been quarried by Gosford Quarries at various sites in the Sydney CBD (particularly 200 George St) for its unique character and is a perfect match to the historic buildings in need of repair and restoration.
We also have stock-piled certain sandstone reserves of rarer sandstone colour ranges specifically for sandstone restoration. Regarding heritage restoration, Gosford Quarries have no equivalent in sourcing the actual stone suitable for any sandstone restoration.
Many heritage restorations result from physical water damage to the sandstone materials, chipping, or some kind of physical damage to the stone. Due to the uniqueness of the rarer sources of sandstone that have been used in heritage buildings, Gosford Quarries can help to specify the best match of sandstone material for each unique sandstone restoration, further ensuring the replacement product will be the closest, almost indistinguishable match to the sisters and brothers it will live alongside.
Gosford Quarries are committed to dedicating our resources to ensure Sydney’s landmark buildings and the beloved sandstone of their foundations and their skin remain preserved, renewed, and restored to continue as long-lasting testaments to our nation's industry architecture and vision.
Quarry tours are available for architects (up to 15 at a time can be booked) to see and experience our sandstone technologies and masonry live on-site at our Gosford Quarries Factories and to help assure any prospective heritage project architect of our singular capabilities within the whole ecosystem of sandstone restoration.
After completing our quarry and factory tours, architects are usually in awe at the execution of detail we can achieve!
This article will cover some of the most important buildings in Sydney that have involved us in site visits, consultation, quarrying, scanning, profiling, transport and, at times, installation.
Sydney Town Hall Sandstone Restoration Project
Sydney Town Hall - Custom Profiled Heritage Restoration Sandstone
Gosford Quarries Sandstone has been eminently involved with Sydney Town Hall’s various stages of sandstone heritage restoration for decades.
Restorations to the main pediments commenced due to the ‘Royal Visit’ of 1991; it was decided that the City had to renew the old building that was Town Hall, a considerable architectural landmark of the city.
Some of the most significant works have been our work on the front entry steps, the ramp and twist balustrades, and all the balustrades at the front of the building. Gosford Quarries also restored the marble lining step treads.
We have worked on the building's Druitt St Side and the Town Hall square side.
Gosford Quarries predominantly supply sandstone to heritage restorers in contemporary times. These heritage restoration businesses come to us for complex stones required for manufacture for restoration. Wherever the sandstone material is sourced, it goes to our Gosford Quarries factory, where we profile and cut the stone. Sometimes it also has heritage finishes applied by hand and tool.
Most Sydney City restorers use “Yellow block” Sandstone when they can get it; it is in limited supply these days. We reserve a reservoir supply for these kinds of heritage projects and buildings like Town Hall.
We have a fantastic relationship with our sub-contractors, who come to us for advice in the tender for heritage restoration projects. Also, if successful for tender, they come back to us with information to quote and, importantly, for aftercare.
In terms of sandstone heritage restoration, we give advice on how to colour or shape the stone further if needed.
- You can view some archived photos of the restoration of the Clock Tower at Sydney Town Hall in the City of Sydney photos archives here.
- Ongoing information regarding restoration works and historical works at Sydney Town Hall can be found here.
The Sydney Town Hall ‘Scope of Works’ for the sandstone restoration can be found here in a PDF.
GPO (General Post Office) Sydney Restoration Project
GPO Sydney - Original Yellow-Block Sandstone Restored with Gosford Quarries Debden sandstone colour range
GPO Sydney - Original Yellow-Block Sandstone Restored with Gosford Quarries Debden sandstone colour range
Sydney's GPO is regarded as Australia’s most significant sandstone architectural building. Did you know this project was so significant that Martin Place was widened to create the space for the GPO?
The building was controversial to a degree with its choice of bells and the fact that they commissioned carvings from the Italian immigrant sculptor Tommaso Sani' of realistic people.
The original building was constructed in two stages beginning in 1866 and was designed under the guidance of Colonial Architect James Barnet.
Gosford Quarries serendipitously found a self-colouring sandstone (the best for the purpose of the GPO restoration) to fit into this facade during restoration. The sandstone material was a naturally oxidised sandstone called ‘Debden Sandstone’. It oxidises into the perfect colour for the restoration of the GPO. It was truly a remarkable find.
The Debden quarry has long been finished, and we no longer have this material available.
6000 cubic metres (gross metres), representing 10 thousand tonnes of sandstone, were installed in 4 years, from 1987 through to 1991.
In the 1970’s Gosford Quarries brought out 3 talented stone masons from England. One of these masons, Ken, only retired just last year. These exquisite stonemasons were faster than any stone made by a machine, stayed with us all these years and created mainly ALL the carvings for the GPO!
During the four-year period of restoration, Gosford Quarries went around the facade, replacing cornice rosettes with physical water damage. That had become a literal safety hazard as some plummeted from their perches above.
Predominantly our sandstone heritage work on the GPO was replacing the level 3 cornices.
Each Rosset was salvaged from demotion, sent to Gosford Quarries, faithfully restored, and carved onto the new stone by our stone masons. It was an enormous endeavour. In the present day, if you were not told the cornices had been replaced visually, you would never know; such is the faithful match of our restoration to the original stone.
Amongst other restoration works for the GPO were replacing the parapet stones and the pediments on the parapets. Also, we worked on the stones in the clock tower. These replacements are a bit more obviously restored Debdens stones that we put in. We had a crane in Martin Place, and all the heritage restored sandstone pieces were lifted onto the scaffold and onto the clock tower directly.
The pieces were 2.5-3m long, 1.2 metres wide, 0.5 metres thick, with 0.5 Rosett carvings underneath. These were handmade heritage sandstone pieces, very expensive items. Each piece was approximately worth around the $15k mark!
During this incredible process of lifting such heavy pieces and the risk of damage, no single rejection of chipping or other problems with the stone was reported or demanded. Alike the sandstone we discovered, this was another incredible outcome for the GPO heritage restoration project.
The scope was not only grand in the product but also in manpower. 30-40 quarrymen were involved, ten stonemasons and some ‘modern machinery’ of that era, not nearly the highly sophisticated standard machinery we have today. They were, though, fairly sophisticated saws. The carvings were all done by hand in the traditional banker mason form.
The original stones were cleaned before World War II. When sandstone is cleaned, you can often remove surface oxidisation; the result is a ‘ghosting’ looking stone instead of the proper Yellow-Block colourations famous in the region.
Sandstone is part of the Sydney story.
It is an Australian fact that the ground we walk on from Pyrmont to Eastern Suburbs is the same self-colouring oxidising sandstone, the ‘Yellow-Block’. It does not exist further than Pyrmont.
There have been famous quarries in Waverley and Bondi that have contributed to feeling the nature of the sandstone in the city. However, the extensive building works of the 1930s depleted all the quarries.
The Wondabyne Sandstone Colour Range became the pre-eminent stone used in the city for claddings and new facade works that were forthcoming in later years.
St Mary’s Cathedral Sandstone Restoration Project
St Mary’s Cathedral - Spire Restoration Project - Wondabyne Sandstone Colour Range
St Mary’s Cathedral - Installation of Replacement Sandstone Spire Panels by Gosford Quarries
In 1882, though unfinished, St Mary's Cathedral was opened to the public and dedicated.
Historically, the sandstone of St Mary’s Cathedral was quarried at Wondabyne and moved via rail to Pyrmont, a horse and cart, then machined and transported by trucks. Hence, the sandstone colour range of St Mary’s Cathedral is ‘Wondabyne’.
It was in 2000 that the southern spires were installed to complete William Wardell’s design (the original architect of the Cathedral).
St Mary’s Cathedral - Installation of Replacement Sandstone Spire Panels by Gosford Quarries
The sandstone required for St Mary’s Cathedral heritage restoration and renewal was quarried from Wondabyne and cut to sizes required on-site and installed by Gosford Quarries as an exclusive installation project circa 2000.
“Archbishop John Polding commissioned architect William Wardell to design a new St Mary’s following the devastating fire in 1865 that razed the original Cathedral. According to Archbishop Polding to Wardell in a letter dated 10 October 1865: “Any plan, any style, anything that is beautiful and grand. I leave all to you and your own inspiration”.
Despite the building’s European origins, Wardell used Australian native flora throughout as a decorative element to ground the Cathedral in its local setting.”
Source: https://www.stmaryscathedral.org.au/history-art/history-of-the-cathedral/
You can find out more about the St Mary’s Ongoing Conservation and Restoration project here.
Governor Macquarie Tower Sandstone Restoration Project
Governor Macquarie Tower - Internal photo of Sandstone Honed Cladding, Pies Creek Cream Sandstone Colour Range
The Governor Macquarie Tower featured a 75mm thick sandstone cladding. Gosford Quarries supplied 8000 square metres of sandstone for the internals and externals of this project.
One of the most underestimated buildings in Sydney, it was a bold decision for architects in 1991 to use sandstone as an external cladding. It signalled the end of the era of pre-cast panels.
Architects chose sandstone in a ‘Sandstone Sydney’, setting a precedent for Sydney City Council to nominate and encourage sandstone in all the periphery of the buildings.
You may be interested in a historical walk of our city's buildings. We suggest the great ‘Macquarie Street Heritage Walk’ to start. Here you can see the fabric of the architectural journey of sandstone woven into the infrastructure of our historic landmark buildings.
There is a great virtual tour of the Tower here.
Heritage Sandstone Specification
Bespoke Tooled Sandstone Heritage Finish - Yellow-Block Sandstone Colour Range Sydney CDB
Sydney has lightly coloured honey-coloured sandstone suitable for the heritage stone fabric we live within in our city of Sydney.
We are often top-of-mind for architects and a go-to for advice and material matching for sandstone restoration projects. Modern projects are no different if the architect is envisioning the use of cladding or a base course of sandstone as decorative elements in their architectural design.
Gosford Quarries work closely with architects to understand what they are trying to achieve and gives guidance and support to specify the sandstone material that will suit the architectural purpose envisioned for each project.
It can take up to 5-6 years from documentation to tender, to win, and to build before the final sandstone project is handed over to installers. We are with you every step of the way.
If we are going to restore our Australian Heritage Buildings, when considering the time, effort and expense it takes to put one stone in place with any significant building, it has to be a higher quality sandstone that we have in supply to rise to the honour and respect such buildings command.
On a specification, if Gosford Quarries are mentioned, it is because it is a precedent that has been set by the 100 years of trusted experience, technology and skill and the extraction of premium sandstone.
It is crucial to receive good advice earlier in a project's life and to ensure specification is done right the first time. The use of sandstone is not as dense as marbles or granites and has to be used in particular ways, not under or over-specified architecturally. It takes particular industry know-how from decades of experience to be able to provide this kind of expert advice.
In the heritage sandstone material market, Australia has no equivalent to Gosford Quarries as a heritage sandstone supplier.
As a custodian and conservation expert, focussed and committed to the preservation and longevity of our beloved sandstone landmark buildings, Gosford Quarries is looking forward to the next 100 years of heritage sandstone supply and restoration renewal in Australia.
