img(height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=2939831959404383&ev=PageView&noscript=1")

Words:
Jan-Carlos Kucharek
Credit: Oxford University Museum of Natural History

If you wanted to see scales in Oxford you’ve always had to walk through its Museum of Natural History to reach the anthropological oddities of the Pitt Rivers Museum beyond. But you needn’t have gone so far. Above your head in the Museum of Natural History’s main hall, its Irish architects Deane and Woodward were, back in 1861, making their own scales – 8,500 diamond-shaped glass tiles for its roof. Now, as part of the building’s £2m refurbishment, which includes the leaking roof, architect Purcell has used the 500cm2 tiles as a template, putting 10mm Pilkington Optifloat clear glass slumped in a ceramic mould to reproduce them – NOT something you’ll want to do with the contents of any bell jar in the Pitt Rivers.

 

Latest

Enter this year’s William Sutton Prize, lead the refurbishment of the UK’s first municipal college, join the race to build 1.5 million homes - some of the latest architecture competitions and contracts from across the industry

Latest: Social housing ideas contest

At Villa Fontaine architect/master builder Craftworks uses quality materials and modern construction technologies. The nine-unit luxury residential building on Sydenham Hill, London, is the latest expression of the firm’s ethos, which aims to disrupt conventions of traditional procurement. Founder John Smart takes us through the project

Luxury residential Villa Fontaine aims to disrupt conventions of traditional procurement

The revitalisation of a north London Victorian terraced house prioritises the carefully considered repositioning of spaces while extending the building by less than three square metres

The revitalisation of a Victorian terraced house prioritises repositioning spaces over adding a large extension

As the search begins for a design team, Paul Boateng, co-chair of the Grenfell Tower Memorial Commission, explains the many roles of the memorial for a traumatised and marginalised community

The five practices shortlisted for the Grenfell Tower memorial have now been announced

Lights, cameras, shhhh.... It seems too quiet at Scott Brownrigg’s Shinfield Studios near Reading, but that’s just what these mega film stages need

Why is it so quiet at Scott Brownrigg’s new Shinfield Studios?