In 1946, M. J. Wright began working with his father at J. G Strange stone quarry, Westington, near Chipping Campden in Gloucestershire. For the first eighteen months he learned about stone: how to quarry it, how to check it for faults, how to dress it and prepare it for the craftsmen to create their masterpieces.
Only after he had successfully mastered all this was he allowed to join the masonry shop. Here he discovered that the natural talent of carving the local oolitic limestone was in his hands and he became a banker mason. Banker masons are those now rare craftsmen who carve the ornamental decorations such as finials, gargoyles, mouldings, sills and frames for windows and doors. Often created in the quarry on a “banker” (a flat stone supported by stones and earth), these were then taken to the building and attached by fixing masons.
M. J. followed in these footsteps for many years at Westington, working on fine pieces to restore the many old and beautiful buildings in the locality, not to mention a wide variety of items destined for the new properties being built at that time. Then, in 1974, with an opportunity to work on the restoration of the beautiful medieval Chipping Campden Church, he decided to start his own business.
The business is now run by his son, Brian, who joined the business from school. He is supported by his two brothers, Leslie and Alan, his uncle David and other loyal employees, with M. J. keeping a watchful eye on the whole process.
Leslie supervises the arrival of all the raw stone, tests it for shakes, the natural flaws that can occur, before preparing and cutting it ready for carving. All quality testing of the raw stone is carried out on the premises.
As M. J. says, “Good stone rings like a bell. You always know”.
Alan is a talented and natural artist. Now he undertakes all the many and varied commissions to design and carve ornamental works of art, a skill in which the company excels.
Today, the variety of products available and the range of commissions undertaken is enormous: from architectural features for buildings and gardens to natural stone flooring, from fireplaces to garden furniture, ornaments and statues, either created and made to the client’s own requirements or available from the comprehensive stock and range of existing designs.
And the tradition continues because the next generation of master banker masons is already being trained.