Cathedral’s heritage treasures preserved

More than a place of worship, Christ Church Cathedral is home to much of Newcastle’s history.  

Experts have carefully removed many of the heritage items to ensure they are protected and preserved during the restoration works.  

IAS Fine Art Logistics General Manager Jeremy Mundey said every object from the Cathedral’s priceless collection was treated with the utmost care.  

“We’re removing some paintings, and we’ve got some heritage chests and drawers, [as well as] tapestries and other kinds of pieces that have been in this church for some time,” he said.  

“And then we’re putting them into very high-quality climate-controlled storage.  

“I would say our storage facilities would be second to only medical grade storage facilities in terms of the cleanliness and the environment that they’re in.” 

IAS Fine Art Logistics has been safeguarding delicate collections since 1987. 

The family-owned company has built a strong reputation in handling a range of items, from precious museum artifacts to entire science collections.  

Artefacts from the Cathedral were individually assessed before being packed and stored based on their specific needs.  

“We don’t necessarily store all of these items together,” Mr Mundey said. 

“Everything is given appropriate care and space, and inventory is very detailed in terms of photographs and dimensions.  

“The [Birdwood] flag is remaining here. It was my recommendation that we don’t move it because it’s extremely fragile.  

“It’s sitting on an angle specifically. I think if it was vertical, [it would] put a lot of strain on the actual flag itself.  

“The fibres are very delicate because it’s well over 100 years old.” 

Items that are too delicate to move will be protected in situ throughout the duration of the restoration.  

Hear more from Jeremy in the video below.