Working Bath stone
the way it was meant to be worked.
Stonemasons working heritage buildings across Bath, Wiltshire and Somerset — same as the family did before us.
Stone & Mortar is a small yard outside Bath run by the third generation of the family. We work entirely in local stone — Bath, Doulting, blue lias — and exclusively in lime mortar on heritage buildings, the way it was built and the way it ought to be repaired.
We are an English Heritage approved contractor. That means listed buildings, church work, conservation areas — and the slower, more patient kind of project that doesn't belong on a modern site. No cement on old stone. No shortcuts. No fuss.
Stone of the West.
Bath stone is an oolitic limestone laid down a hundred and seventy million years ago, when this part of England sat under a warm, shallow sea. It is honey-coloured, freshly cut, and weathers in a manner no manufactured material has yet learned to imitate.
It cuts well in any direction the day after it leaves the ground — the masons call it green. Left to cure, it hardens against the weather and holds the city of Bath together: the Royal Crescent, the Circus, the Abbey, every terrace and garden wall in between.
We work it with chisel and mallet, set it in lime, and leave it to weather. That is the trade, and it has not changed in any way that matters.
Restoration, stone by stone.
A selection of jobs from the last two years — churches, town houses, garden walls and one chimneypiece carved from the block.
Five things, done properly.
Heritage repair leads the yard. Carving and new-build work fits round it.
Heritage Stonework Restoration
Listed buildings, churches, conservation work. Repointing in lime mortar, indent repairs, stone replacement to match.
Bespoke Stone Carving
Chimneypieces, lettering, mouldings, finials. Drawn first, carved by hand from the block.
Stone Fireplaces
Surrounds and hearths in Bath stone or blue lias. Period reproductions or to your own design.
Drystone Walling
Field walls, garden walls, retaining banks across the Mendips and Somerset levels.
New Builds in Local Stone
Extensions and outbuildings that sit properly next to old stone. Hand-dressed faces, no machine cut.
“They treated the building with the patience it deserved. The repointing is invisible — which, on a Grade II listed façade, is the highest compliment I can pay.”
Come to the yard,
or have us come to you.
Most jobs begin with a visit and a conversation. Send us a few photos of what you have in mind and we'll be in touch with a sensible idea of cost and timeline. Heritage work books up — please give us as much notice as you can.
Mendips, Cotswolds & the Levels