Sheaves of stone – a new carving for an old steading

For the last 18 months, Jack Handscombe has been training as a Historic Environment Scotland Stone Carving Craft Fellow, mentored by Michelle De Bruin at Hutton Stone in the Scottish Borders. Jack gives us a rare insight into some of the thoughts and considerations involved in designing architectural carvings, and describes how he sought to reconnect a new development in East Lothian with the historic use of the land.

In Longniddry, East Lothian, a late 18th-century farm steading is undergoing a thoughtful transformation. Once the working heart of an agricultural landscape, the steading will be the centrepiece of a new residential development, the old farm buildings converted into shops, cafes, and local services. Amidst this renewal, I was given the opportunity, through my role as a Craft Fellow, to contribute carved stone sculptures that speak both to the history of the site and to its new life at the heart of a community.

This is a place I’ve come to know well. Since 2018, I’ve been involved in creating a public art programme for the surrounding new-build homes. It was a welcome continuation when I was invited to carve something for the gables of a new structure, positioned in the centre of the old steading.

The breadbasket of Scotland

The new building replaces a non-historic metal-sided grain store that once stood in the steading’s core. In recognition of that former use, and its intended repurposing as a grocery shop, we decided that a sheaf of wheat would be a fitting subject for sculpture.

The symbol resonates more broadly with East Lothian’s agricultural identity. Known as the ‘breadbasket of Scotland’, the region features wheat sheaves in the crown of its heraldic crest. The importance of this agricultural identity in the Scottish Lowlands and east coast is apparent in the built environment. One only has to visit the Corn Exchange in Haddington or pass through to Allanton village to find historical precedents. Another striking example is Scottish sculptor Alexander Handyside Ritchie’s sculptural representation of agriculture. This allegorical (symbolic representative) figure holding a sheaf of wheat is located in St Andrew’s Square, Edinburgh. Drawing inspiration from these examples, I sought to create a pair of sculptures that would sit comfortably in their own context at the Longniddry Farm Steading development.

Wheat sheaf carving in Allanton village and Alexander Handyside Ritchie’s sculpture Agriculture, Edinburgh. © Jack Handscombe

Considering angles

The design of the sheaves is informed by their location along one side of the main route into the development. The gables face onto an open space but their position along the path means they are most often viewed from the side by passers-by. This requires consideration of all the viewing angles as the sculptures have to be legible in profile as well as from face-on. To integrate the design into the building, the sheaves are carved as if they are sitting on a corbel. The corbel itself is based on local vernacular forms, echoing features one might find supporting an old goods hoist on a similar agricultural building.

A chaotic bundle from a solid block

Carving wheat in stone isn’t straightforward. Wheat and stone are somewhat opposites: one a chaotic bundle, the other a solid block. A sheaf of wheat consists of delicate stalks, overlapping leaves, and ripening ears that droop and twist in unpredictable ways. Trying to capture that tangle in three-dimensional stone, especially in high relief, is a challenge that requires forethought and some degree of abstraction.

The carvings in progress, from squared blocks of stone to 3D carvings of wheat sheaves. © Jack Handscombe

Unlike stylised or illustrative depictions in low relief, where simplification is common and often necessary, working ‘in the round’ (in 3 dimensions) demands a different approach. I had to develop my own abstracted form of an ear of wheat that retained the essential geometry, while remaining structurally sound and visually legible. The result is a representation developed from observing the wheat itself, the guidance of Michelle De Bruin, the work of other sculptors, and ultimately informed by the limitations of stone as a material.

Timing, as it happened, was perfect. I worked on the sculptures during the harvest. The workshop at Hutton Stone is surrounded by fields which provided not just visual reference but also a poetic parallel. Bringing the carvings to fruition in tandem with the ripening of the fields — I was racing to complete the work before my references were harvested.

One of the carvings in situ at the Longniddry Farm Steading development. © Jack Handscombe.

A quiet offering

The carvings in progress, from squared blocks of stone to 3D carvings of wheat sheaves. © Jack Handscombe

As I worked, I kept returning to an idea about incorporating carved vegetal forms into buildings — particularly in places that were once rural, now shifting toward urbanisation. There’s something significant about using stone to memorialise what was once there. By incorporating a sheaf of wheat into the wall of this new development, there’s a gesture of acknowledgment – a quiet offering back to the agricultural land, now built upon. Ultimately, the sculptures are something to be viewed. For some, they may recall the site’s agricultural past. For others, perhaps they will serve as a reminder to pick up a loaf of bread. Whether viewed as memory or ornament, I hope they add to the character, interest and history of the site for years to come.

Find out more

Find out more about our Craft Fellowships or get in touch if you’re interested in hosting and collaborating on a Craft Fellowship.

We advertise all Craft Fellowship, Trainee and Apprenticeship vacancies on the Historic Environment Scotland current vacancies page, when available.