Grey towers of Durham

For the most part, this blog won't feature the more well-known architecture and land in Durham, as plenty and more has been written on that. But Prebends' Bridge (NZ 27145 41856) is a such a special place that I feel that it really has to feature as the first post here. No apologies for that.
 




 

View of Prebends' Bridge from upstream beyond the weir between the two former
mills (the former corn mill is right of view); the third arch lies left of view,
largely hidden by trees on the riverbank (photograph taken mid afternoon 10 February 2016).
Note the University students rowing between the bridge and the weir.

Prebends’ Bridge (the spelling appears variously as Prebends, Prebend's and Prebends', the last, I think, is correct) is a Grade I listed building (List Entry 1121354) and a scheduled monument (List Entry 1002337). It was built in the 1770s (most sources say 1772-78) from designs by George Nicholson, architect and clerk of works to the Dean and Chapter. A previous bridge, of probable 17th-century date, was destroyed by a catastrophic flood in 1771 (its abutment is still just visible on the west bank of the river, upstream from the existing structure).

Extract from John Wood's map of Durham from 1820.
Note that Prebends' Bridge is simply annotated 'New Bridge', with the riverbank
footpath leading to it from the Cathedral named 'Prebends Walk'.

Built in coursed squared sandstone and ashlar with three semi-circular arches, Prebends’ Bridge spans the deeply incised gorge of the River Wear on the western side of its peninsula loop in Durham. Standing approximately 12m above water level, perhaps its most interesting features, to me anyway, are the paired recessed refuges in each parapet. These are created by having semi-hexagonal projections rising to full bridge height above the cutwaters of the two river piers on each side. Another noteworthy feature, which many visitors probably miss, is the series of stone drains which protrude from the outer bridge faces at road bed level. The bridge is on the Heritage at Risk Register maintained by Historic England, due to the extent of physical deterioration of its masonry and a programme of remediation is on-going.

On the angled north parapet of the bridge, towards its western end, is an inscription of the words of Sir Walter Scott, taken from his 1817 poem Harold the Dauntless. Inspired by the Viking legends of the Berserkers, Scott reputedly described the poem - evidently his last long narrative verse - as "a strange, rude story" (it features the ghost of Harold's father, the Norse King Witikind). The Prebends' Bridge inscription reads:

GREY TOWERS OF DVRHAM
YET WELL I LOVE THY MIXED AND MASSIVE PILES
HALF CHVRCH OF GOD HALF CASTLE ‘GAINST THE SCOT
AND LONG TO ROAM THESE VENERABLE AISLES
WITH RECORDS STORED OF DEEDS LONG SINCE FORGOT

The Scott inscription on the north parapet of Prebends' Bridge
(photograph taken 10 February 2016).

The view up river to the north from the west end of the bridge was captured as a watercolour by J.M.W. Turner in about 1836. This famous atmospheric work, with the Cathedral rising above the wooded river gorge, was produced to be engraved as an illustration in Turner’s Picturesque Views in England and Wales. The watercolour was based on sketches made by Turner on several earlier visits to Durham, the last thought to be in 1817.

 



View up river to the north from Prebends' Bridge (photograph taken mid afternoon 10 February 2016); while the wooded river gorge is in deepening shadow, the Cathedral remains brightly
illuminated by the late winter sun; Framwellgate Bridge spans the Wear in the distance.
.

 

Turner’s famous watercolour can be found online elsewhere; I'll end with a lesser known illustration of Prebends' Bridge.

This illustration of Prebends' Bridge and the Cathedral beyond supposedly dates
 to the early 19th century, though its precise date and the identity of the illustrator
are unknown. Note the fisherman on the riverbank in the foreground.