Waterfall in Albion Place Gardens, Ramsgate-geograph-4572203

Pulhamite was a

patented A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A p ...

anthropic rock material invented by James Pulham (1820–1898) of the firm James Pulham and Son of

Broxbourne Broxbourne is a town and former civil parish, now in the unparished area of Hoddesdon, in the Broxbourne district, in Hertfordshire, England, north of London, with a population of 15,303 at the 2011 Census.Broxbourne Town population 2011 It ...

in Hertfordshire. It was widely used for

rock garden A rock garden, also known as a rockery and formerly as a rockwork, is a garden, or more often a part of a garden, with a landscaping framework of rocks, stones, and gravel, with planting appropriate to this setting. Usually these are small ...

s and grottos.

Overview

Pulhamite, which usually looked like gritty

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

, was used to join natural rocks together or crafted to simulate natural stone features. It was so realistic that it fooled some geologists of the era. The recipe went to the grave with him. Modern analysis of surviving original Pulhamite have shown it to be a blend of sand,

Portland cement Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world as a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco, and non-specialty grout. It was developed from other types of hydraulic lime in England in the early 19th cen ...

and

clinker Clinker may refer to: *Clinker (boat building), construction method for wooden boats *Clinker (waste), waste from industrial processes *Clinker (cement), a kilned then quenched cement product * ''Clinkers'' (album), a 1978 album by saxophonist St ...

sculpted over a core of

rubble Rubble is broken stone, of irregular size, shape and texture; undressed especially as a filling-in. Rubble naturally found in the soil is known also as 'brash' (compare cornbrash)."Rubble" def. 2., "Brash n. 2. def. 1. ''Oxford English Dictionar ...

and crushed bricks. * Neo-Norman gatehouse and folly at

Benington Lordship Benington may refer to: * Benington, Hertfordshire, England, a village and parish * Benington, Lincolnshire, England, a village and parish * John Benington (1921–1969), American basketball coach * Walter Benington Walter Benington (1872–1936) ...

in Hertfordshire *Rockery, Burslem Park * Cascade and Rock Garden,

Ramsgate Ramsgate is a seaside town in the district of Thanet in east Kent, England. It was one of the great English seaside towns of the 19th century. In 2001 it had a population of about 40,000. In 2011, according to the Census, there was a populatio ...

, * Courtstairs Chine, Ramsgate, * Garden Folly,

Sydenham Hill Wood Sydenham Hill Wood is a ten-hectare wood on the northern slopes of the Norwood Ridge in the London Borough of Southwark. It is designated as a Local Nature Reserve and Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation. With the adjacent ...

, Sydenham, London. * Grottoes at Dewstow Gardens, South Wales * Dunorlan Park,

Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Rocks. ...

Felixstowe Felixstowe ( ) is a port town in Suffolk, England. The estimated population in 2017 was 24,521. The Port of Felixstowe is the largest container port in the United Kingdom. Felixstowe is approximately 116km (72 miles) northeast of London. H ...

Spa and Winter Garden, Suffolk *

Fernery A fernery is a specialized garden for the cultivation and display of ferns. In many countries, ferneries are indoors or at least sheltered or kept in a shadehouse to provide a moist environment, filtered light and protection from frost and other ...

and waterfall, Bromley Palace Park,

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 87,889 as of 2011. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, char ...

* Grotto, Wotton House, Surrey * Water course and pump tower, The Dell, Englefield Green * Henley Hall, Shropshire * Lake and rockery, Milton Mount Gardens,

Crawley Crawley () is a large town and borough in West Sussex, England. It is south of London, north of Brighton and Hove, and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Crawley covers an area of and had a population of 106,597 at the time of th ...

* Leonardslee, rockery in Grade I listed gardenn at Lower Beeding, near Horsham, West Sussex, England. *

Newstead Abbey Newstead Abbey, in Nottinghamshire, England, was formerly an Augustinian priory. Converted to a domestic home following the Dissolution of the Monasteries, it is now best known as the ancestral home of Lord Byron. Monastic foundation The prio ...

fernery A fernery is a specialized garden for the cultivation and display of ferns. In many countries, ferneries are indoors or at least sheltered or kept in a shadehouse to provide a moist environment, filtered light and protection from frost and other ...

, Nottinghamshire * Rock Cliff,

Bawdsey Manor Bawdsey Manor stands at a prominent position at the mouth of the River Deben close to the village of Bawdsey in Suffolk, England, about northeast of London. Built in 1886, it was enlarged in 1895 as the principal residence of Sir William C ...

Suffolk Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include L ...

* Water Garden,

Highnam Court Highnam Court is a Grade I listed country house in Highnam, Gloucestershire, England, constructed in the 17th century. The estate passed from the Cooke family to the Guise family and, in the mid-19th century, was purchased by a member of the Gamb ...

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east of t ...

* Zig-zag Path,

Lower Leas Coastal Park Lower Leas Coastal Park is in Folkestone, in Kent, England. The park is split into three broad recreational zones, starting at The Leas Lift (on Lower Sandgate Road) and heading west. The formal zone comprises pine avenues and flower gardens, pl ...

Folkestone Folkestone ( ) is a port town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour and shipping port for most of the 19th and 20t ...

* Rosshall Park,

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated pop ...

* Gardens at Waddesdon Manor, Buckinghamshire * Heythrop Park, Oxfordshire * Fernery at

Danesbury Park Danesbury Park is a public park and Local Nature Reserve in Welwyn in Hertfordshire. It is owned and managed by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council Welwyn is a village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England. The parish also includes the ...

, Hertfordshire. * Waterfall at

Battersea Park Battersea Park is a 200-acre (83-hectare) green space at Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth in London. It is situated on the south bank of the River Thames opposite Chelsea and was opened in 1858. The park occupies marshland rec ...

, London. * Gardens at Coombe Wood, Croydon. * Colney Hall near

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the Episcopal see, See of ...

* Cliffs at North Shore, Blackpoolhttps://democracy.blackpool.gov.uk/documents/s49453/Appendix%20A%20Cabin%20Lift.pdf * Former Terraced Gardens, Rivington,

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a Historic counties of England, historic county, Ceremonial County, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significa ...

Gallery

File:Pulhamite Cliff Walk at Bawdsey Manor-geograph-2346581.jpg, Pulhamite cliff walk at Bawdsey Manor File:Sydenham Woods - a folly-geograph-2208729-by-Brian-Whittle.jpg, Folly in Sydenham Hill Wood File:Pulham rocks in the Water Garden at Waddesdon Manor estate.jpg, Pulham rocks in the Water Garden at Waddesdon Manor estate File:Folkestone, Leas Cliff Zig-Zag-Path-geograph-2285893-by-Helmut-Zozmann.jpg, Zig-zag Path in Folkestone File:Pulhamite grotto at Wotton House.jpg, Pulhamite grotto at Wotton House, Surrey

References

{{Reflist

External links

The Pulham LegacyDurability Guaranteed – Pulhamite Rockwork
pdf file on the

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

website.
The Story of Pulhamite RockworkPulham at Waddesdon Manor video
Building stone Architectural history Rock formations Victorian architecture Gardening in England

Overview

Gallery

See also

References

External links