Removal of partition wall
Between the ruined walls of the transept, workers from RBMH are making good progress; Following the casting the concrete slab, they quickly raised the scaffolding against the facades of the church arm.
Soon, the entire volume of the transept was lined with metal structures; Workmen now have access to the walls and roof of the side aisle;
Meanwhile, workmen are also active inside, on the other side of the dividing wall; They erected further scaffolding to gain access to the vaulted ceiling; This brick and plaster structure, installed at the end of the 19th century, rests on the wall to be removed; So it too must be removed;
Then it’s time to tackle the wall; Starting with the foundation, the masons unseal the stones one by one; Using a jackhammer or a crowbar, evacuating stones and rubble by crane, the initial breach quickly became a gaping hole; It took them less than two weeks to install the 10-metre high wall; The reunification of the transept with the aisle, even under the open sky, immediately gives a good idea of the final volume;
Reconstruction prospects
The deposited lapidary is imposing; The sheer volume of some of the stones makes masons admire the labor of their ancestors, who worked without cranes; Numerous replacements are found and set aside; The rest of the stones are piled up near the transept, awaiting the rebuilding of the walls; In addition to these replacements, there is also an old plaster on the pillar, preserved from the elements by the masonry; Painted stones were also found embedded in the structure; These traces of plaster and paint indicate that the church was once more ornate than it is today;
The scaffolding also gives full access to the remaining arch; This allows you to start taking dimensions, placing markers and drawing chalk lines, in preparation for future constructions;
The masons are now tackling the wall of the former sacristy, which bisects the aisle; One of them confides: “There are big stones to get out of here too !