Join us for an interdisciplinary conference exploring the stone industry in 18th-century Britain and Ireland. Hosted by Trinity College Dublin’s ERC-funded STONE-WORK project, this event brings together geologists, architectural historians, and historians to examine the complex processes of stone sourcing and supply that shaped architectural production during the period.
Through a series of presentations and discussions, the conference will explore the complex relationships between quarrying, trade, and urban development. Key topics include:
Quarrying techniques and supply chains
Working conditions and daily life in quarrying communities
The role of stone merchants in London, Dublin, and regional markets, as well as their connections to international trade networks
Transportation practices and challenges in archival research
The impact of stone sourcing on urban and regional identity.
In addition, we will explore the lithic character of towns, cities, and regions, and consider how it was shaped, not only by the quality of building stone but also by the effective management of stone supply. How did the characteristics of lithologies impact upon their success as building stones? Can international case studies of stone supply illuminate the dynamics of the stone trade in Britain and Ireland? By exploring these and other questions, we aim to engage in a cross-disciplinary dialogue on a topic of great significance for 18th-century building production.
The conference offers an opportunity to deepen our understanding of the economic, social, and material dimensions of the 18th-century stone industry in Britain and Ireland.
We are grateful to the European Research Council (ERC), Trinity College Dublin, and the Long Room Hub Arts and Humanities Research Institute for their generous support in making this conference possible.
Date: Monday, June 23, 2025
Location: Neill Lecture Theatre, Trinity Long Room Hub, Trinity College Dublin
Time: 9:30 AM – 4:30 PM
Register here
Contact Information
For any questions or further information about the event, please contact the organising team at nele.luttmann@tcd.ie or stone-work@tcd.ie.
Conference Programme
09:00 - 09:30 Registration
09:30 - 09:35 Introductory Address
Christine Casey (Trinity College Dublin)
Morning Session: Britain and Ireland
Chair: Melanie Hayes (Trinity College Dublin)
09:35 - 10:00 Portland Stone Trade and Architectural Networks in Early Modern Britain and Ireland
Nele Littmann (Trinity College Dublin)
10:00 - 10:25 Constructive Relationships or Obstructive Monopoly? The Darleys of Dublin
Gillian Darley (Independent Scholar)
10:25 - 10:50 The Magnesian Limestone in Eighteenth-Century South Yorkshire
Ruth Siddall (Trinity College Dublin)
10:50 - 11:00 Q&A
11:00 - 11:30 Morning Coffee Break
11:30 - 11:55 Black Marble in Western Europe, Variation on a Lithology: Characterisation, Age, Extraction, Exploitation and Utilisation in the Eighteenth Century
Patrick Wyse Jackson & Louise Caulfield (Trinity College Dublin)
11:55 - 12:20 ‘Substances… very dark and opaque’: Steps and Stairs of Black Limestone in the Work of Christopher Wren
Andrew Tierney & Ruth Siddall (Trinity College Dublin)
12:20 - 12:30 Q&A
12:30 - 14:00 Lunch Break
Afternoon Session: European Connections
Chair: Andrew Tierney (Trinity College Dublin)
14:00 - 14:25 Toward Albion: Notes for a Better Knowledge of the International Marble Market Between Carrara, Genoa, and Britain in the Eighteenth Century
Roberto Santamaria (Università per Stranieri di Siena)
14:25 - 14:50 Marble from Holland – The Dutch Trade in Carrara Marble
Frits Scholten (Rijksmuseum Amsterdam)
14:50 - 15:00 Q&A
15:00 - 15:30 Afternoon Coffee Break
15:30 - 15:55 Stone from Afar: Import and Export of Natural Stone in the Northern Netherlands (Seventeenth–Eighteenth Century)
Gabri van Tussenbroek (Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands / University of Amsterdam)
15:55 - 16:05 Q&A
Closing Session
16:05 - 16:30 Closing Remarks
Steven Brindle (English Heritage)