Call for case studies on paints and coatings for lime substrates

Historic Environment Scotland (HES) are collaborating with Historic England on a joint programme of research into paints and coatings for external timber, lime and metal. We are interested to hear about any recent, current or proposed projects which could help inform future research and best practice guidance. Find out more and submit a project through our call for case studies.

Lime finishes in Scotland

The PhD research on the evidence for, extent of historic use, and role of lime finishes in Scotland was undertaken by Dr Tim Meek and jointly funded by HES and Stirling University. It led to publication of two technical papers:

• Technical Paper 31 sets out the historical background to external lime coatings on traditional buildings in Scotland, and includes a series of case studies demonstrating evidence for how and why these finishes were applied.
• Technical Paper 33 presents evidence for the variety of historic pointing and joint finishing styles found in Scotland from the 17th to 20th centuries.

Lime mortar finishes on a traditional stone wall.

What’s the Point? Symposia

Building on Technical Papers 31 and 33, a series of symposiums have been delivered by the Lime Finishes Group, HES and Historic England:

• ‘What’s the Point?’ was held at the Engine Shed, Stirling in September 2024. A HES blog identifies some of the important outcomes.
• ‘What’s the Point? 2’ was held in York in April 2026. Synopses and recordings of the talks are now available.
• ‘What’s the Point? 3’ is scheduled to return to the Engine Shed, Stirling on 12-13th May 2027, focusing on the relationship between culture, climate and resilience.

Surface finish survey tool

HES have developed a survey application tool to record the presence of surface finish on buildings. This tool was developed with assistance from Dr Tim Meek following methodologies employed within his PhD research and was adapted from the methodology presented in Technical Paper 33.  The tool allows for the rapid on-site recording of the presence of surface finish, documenting information on location, exposure, coverage, and thickness. It is currently being employed as part of the HES PIC Stone Survey project. 

Understanding historic mortars in Scotland

HES have developed a database to integrate the results of over 3000 mortar analysis reports from the Scottish Lime Centre Trust, enabling this data to be interrogated in more detail. Technical Paper 32 sets outs some of the research questions addressed as well as limitations (and future opportunities) of the project.

Heritage science team working on understanding historic mortars

Lime Guidance

HES has produced a number of technical guidance documents on Lime. You can find these in our Building Advice pages about Lime.