Burlington Slate - Joins artefacts displayed at Shetland museum
and archives
Natural slate roofing from the UK’s leading producer,
Cumbria-based Burlington, features as the roof finish on
the new Shetland Museum and Archives building, recently
opened on the islands and constructed at a cost of £11.6
million. Managed by the Shetland Amenity Trust and
designed by award wining architects, BDP, the building
has a traditional pitched roof structure that is
finished in 1800sq m of Burlington Blue/Grey natural
slate.
Appropriately constructed using traditional materials -
also including harled masonry walls and timber windows -
Shetland Museum and Archives occupies a dynamic
waterside setting on the historic Hay’s Dock in the
centre of Lerwick, Shetland’s capital.
Home to a remarkable collection of over 3,000 artefacts,
the Burlington roof covering was specified to help
provide protection to the building, and in particular
for its resilience to the extreme maritime climate that
exists in this most exposed of UK locations.
Specified as sized slates - 18” in length by random
widths - the Burlington roof covering was installed by
Shetland-based main contractors, DITT Construction.
Occupying the roof-scapes of the Shetland Museum and
Archives’ traditional form, the Burlington slate serves
to complement the building’s overall presence which is
punctuated by the iconic form of the three storey timber
clad boat hall, the sloping walls of which have been
conceived as large abstract sails – separated by tall,
narrow vertical glazing strips. This design feature
serves to echo in colour and form the sails of the
Herring drifters which were built in the adjoining 19th
Century boatsheds.
Alongside the boat hall – containing five traditional
boats dramatically suspended in mid-air - Shetland
Museum and Archives features a central core of display
galleries at ground and first floor levels, orientated
to maximise natural light and views over Hays Dock. A
dedicated temporary exhibition space is located behind
this and adjacent to the foyer.
On the building’s upper levels lies the Archives
repository, associated public search room and staff
accommodation. Shetland Museum and Archives also houses
a 120 seat lecture theatre and 60 seat restaurant that
has an external terrace and panoramic sea views.
Constructed with funding from Shetland Charitable Trust
and Heritage Lottery Fund, Shetland Museum and Archives
has recently been chosen as a best practice example by
the Scottish Executive in its new strategy for
architecture.
Email:
julie@wentworthcomms.co.uk
Arundel Jones Associates Ltd
Hill Farm, Linton Hill, Maidstone, Kent ME17 4AL
Tel : 01622 745333
news@buildingdesign.co.uk
Registered in England and Wales No. 07334149
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