Albert Memorial


Metalock Engineering UK Ltd were asked by English Heritage to repair the 135-year old Albert Memorial, which stands opposite The Albert Hall in London. Upon completion of a thorough inspection it was decided to retain as much of the original castings as possible with Metalock cutting away major damage and supplying new sections, these were then secured into position using the Metalock cold repair process.


The memorial is constructed from elaborate cast iron sections, up to 75mm thick, clad in lead and decorated with bronze and mosaics. There is also wrought iron, early mild steel, copper and gold. The lead in places is 20mm thick.


In the original design there was no provision for the lead to expand, and being constrained it buckled in hot weather. Eventually, the buckled areas cracked and split and let water into the cast iron core leading to corrosion over the years. Corrosion jacked up the lead even more which increased the cracking. Parts of the cast iron core were severely corroded and in some areas there were cracks. These might have been the result of settlement over the years.


Following casting repairs, all components were cleaned and red lead painted before the lead claddings were put back with improved slip joints enabling expansion and contraction without causing splits.


Nearly 100 metres of “Metalocking” was used to repair broken and badly cracked core castings comprising the elements London’s Albert Memorial. Pictures shows stitching new to old on one of the upper gables in Metalock’s workshop.


To preserve and protect our rich architectural heritage…


Please contact us on +44 (0) 2476 338205 or email sales@metalock.co.uk for more information or scan for your no-obligation quotation.


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