Traditional Craft | Heritage Lime

Passing on the Craft: From The Bahamas to the Cotswolds

by Mark Folkes | Oct 31, 2025 | Blog, Historic & Traditional Skills, Stonemasonry

At Heritage Lime, we’re passionate about keeping the timeless art of stonemasonry alive – not only through our daily work when restoring and maintaining heritage buildings, but also through opportunities to skill-share and teach.

Thanks to the generous support of The King’s Foundation, we were recently able to welcome a group of students who had travelled all the way from The Bahamas to join us here in our yard at Perrott’s Brook; they were going to spend three weeks with us for some hands-on training experience and to learn about all things lime.

Learning the Essentials

Over the course of their three-week stay, this handful of Bahamian students were able to immerse themselves in learning all about this heritage craft, beginning with an exploration into the lime cycle and how this remarkable, sustainable natural material is made. They even had the opportunity to produce their own lime, firing raw materials themselves with the use of a kiln.

With this core knowledge, they then moved on to explore more practical skills around stonemasonry; the students were able to gain hands-on experience of lime repointing, as well as the physically intense yet delicate artistry of stone carving. Each student began carving their own section of stone that would later make a collaborative arch, erected by combining all pieces of their work together as their final project.

Creating a Piece of Home

Each student’s section was emblazoned with an emblem that represented their home in the Bahamas – and on speaking to these students, it was clear how important and promising it was for them to be able to take these skills home with them; some of them were planning to use these skills to run their own businesses, or to improve their practice in their existing work at home, somewhere with an abundance of these natural resources and materials. Most of them spoke of how carving into stone was the most valuable and enjoyable skill that they’d learned during their time here at Heritage Lime, and when forming this striking and symbolic arch together, it was clear just how much knowledge they’d acquired to take home with them to the Bahamas.

When assembled together, these stones represented not only a beautiful dedication to their home and heritage thanks to their personal stone carvings; but it was also a culmination of a fortnight of skill-sharing, and a testament to their aptitude to learn all about this traditional skillset. Each student demonstrated infectious enthusiasm and curiosity, and their willingness to learn with these hands-on and challenging materials is exactly why it is so important that teaching opportunities such as these exist.

A Shared Commitment to Craft & Heritage

This project, made possible thanks to The King’s Foundation and their dedication to the teaching of traditional, rural crafts reflects not only the importance of keeping heritage skills alive, but – most importantly – just how vital it is to give enthusiastic students the keys to creating their own sustainable, enduring, and fulfilling career path. This in turn gives them the right tools to keep these traditions alive, and eventually pass their knowledge onto the future generation of stonemasons themselves.

At Heritage Lime, we’re firm believers that passing on the skills that we’ve learned is as vital as the work that we carry out on a day-to-day basis – and we’re incredibly proud to have been hand-selected by The King’s Foundation to pass our expertise and artistry on to a group of such enthusiastic and hard-working students.

The culmination of three weeks of hard work together was a beautiful BBQ that we shared on a sunny afternoon in our yard, before the Bahamian students carried on to Scotland where they’d be learning more hands-on traditional skills. It was an absolute pleasure to host every single one of them – and a huge thanks to all the team here at Heritage Lime for making this three-week journey possible.

Lime in Masonry – From Ancient Times to Modern Day

by Mark Folkes | Apr 13, 2024 | Blog, Historic & Traditional Skills, Lime Products

Masonry has been an integral part of human civilisation since ancient times, and lime has been a material that’s been used throughout it all. Its significance stretches across millennia, and it’s been an enduring symbol of innovation and longevity throughout. All across the globe, the techniques of working with lime have become a constant, albeit ever-evolving, cornerstone of construction. So let’s delve into the historical journey that lime has taken, and uncover the legacy that it has left on the world.

6000 Years of Using Lime…

The story of lime begins all the way back when ancient cultures first discovered its remarkable properties. As far back as 6000 years ago, Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans have utilised lime in various forms to create enduring structures that have withstood the test of time; around 5.5 million tonnes of limestone and 500,000 tonnes of mortar were used to build the Great Pyramid in Egypt. This stone formed part of an outer layer of fine white limestone that would have made the sides of the pyramid completely smooth, and had a polished effect that would have gleamed in the sun. These casing blocks were transported over 15km from a quarry downriver from Giza. By the 19th century, most of the casing blocks had been removed and used for other building work, which – whilst a shame for the Pyramids to not shine in their former glory – does support the notion that lime is able to be perpetually reused and recycled, further contributing to its positive effects that lime can have on the environment.

Lime provided these ancient builders with a versatile material for creating durable mortar and plaster, and the Greeks and Romans further refined its use in masonry construction. The Romans, in particular, elevated lime to new heights of sophistication; they invented hydraulic lime, which possessed the ability to set underwater. By blending lime with pozzolan – a finely powdered material possibly made from volcanic ash or brick dust at the time – the mixture hardened much quicker, allowing it to be used in settings such as ponds and aqueducts.

This legacy continued throughout time, as monks continued these practices throughout the medieval era to create places of worship, and architects of the Renaissance era sought inspiration from the Roman masters in their masterpieces too. The Gothic cathedrals of France, and the graceful domed architecture of some of Italy’s most iconic buildings all owe their beauty and their durability to the past innovation of the Romans.

…And Here’s to 6000 More?

Of course, lime continues to play a prominent role in masonry construction to this day. Valued for its sustainability, durability, and aesthetic appeal, architects and builders are continuing to showcase the virtues of lime as a natural and environmentally friendly alternative to conventional cement-based materials. From historic preservation projects to contemporary sustainable design, lime continues to be as relevant in masonry today as it ever has been.

At Heritage Lime, we are proud to continue the craft and practice of these traditional methods moving forward into the modern day. Our materials and masonry skills have been used for the renovation and preservation of numerous historical buildings across the country, and we are proud to be training a new generation of builders to inherit this knowledge as well.

Thanks to The King’s Foundation, we will be teaching the principles of conservation and stone repair at the highly esteemed estate of Highgrove in the South West. Synonymous with craftsmanship and aesthetic excellence, the Highgrove estate has the facilities for training and education in order for apprentices to put their newly acquired skills into practice. It is an honour for us to be able to collaborate with The King’s Foundation – not only due to the high esteem of this prestigious estate, but to help continue the practice of these traditional methods for years to come, and see that these practices are preserved and passed onto the next generation of builders and into the modern day.