The aim of this dissertation was to take a subject which is particularly poorly researched and to begin to draw some conclusions about the range of materials and techniques, the dates at which those materials and techniques were in use and the people who commissioned and the practitioners who actually did the work.
Of the seventeenth century work the parget on the Old Sun Inn is the most famous in Saffron Walden and deservedly so. Any pargeter would be proud of the balance and characterisation of the bird and vegetation motifs which show so much personality that other work elsewhere by the same pargeter should be easy to identify, although none has been found as yet. It is notable how little other seventeenth century parget there is in Saffron Walden, that which still remains was typically trapped during later renovations or saved by the poverty of the inhabitants.
The elevations with simple rectangular panels probably appeared as the exuberant seventeenth century work fell from fashion, but following them there is little parget for over 150 years.
The historically inspired restoration of the Old Sun Inn and the work of Nesfield brought Arts and Crafts parget early to Saffron Walden and within a very few years the Arts and Crafts Terraces were being pargeted with stamps into sand and cement render, a complete change of both tools and materials compared to the seventeenth century.
It is perhaps unsurprising that in Saffron Walden the names of seventeenth century pargeters have not survived, but more surprising that there is so little evidence of who did the late nineteenth and early twentieth century pargeting, though this is perhaps a measure of how pargeting has not been valued as an art form. The names of late twentieth and twenty first century pargeters might also have been forgotten but a helpful interview with retired pargeter Dave Lewis established many provenances. Twenty first century freehand pargeters tend to sign their work in some way and the pargeter, the client and the planning system may also keep some supporting documentation.
Having a clear grasp of the scope of pargeting in Saffron Walden is a vital first step in the understanding of pargeting elsewhere. The author has a good general knowledge of the pargeting of Suffolk and remnants of interesting old parget seem more widespread in the Suffolk countryside than is the case in Saffron Walden, including remnants of lime parget tucked in the eaves after a later re-plaster. It is possible that trade of pargeting in lime plaster never completely died out as nineteenth century Suffolk pargeting was likely to be combed work using lime plaster. Stamped work of any date is rarely seen in the Suffolk countryside, though there is some in Bury St Edmunds.
Old pargeting also exists at low density around other parts of England and the celebrated pieces are high quality work prominently displayed in town centres. For example 43-45 High Street, Canterbury has rusticated panelling and four panels of exquisite 17th century freehand modelling. It is unclear whether this type of top quality work was by specialists brought from elsewhere or whether it is a splendid remnant of a more widespread local pargeting tradition, the majority of which has since been removed. The discovery of pargeting on nearby buildings which are tucked down minor roads or on farm buildings, would begin to answer the question of how widespread and varied pargeting once was.
