HRH the Prince of Wales was among the supporters of this £5.5m refurbishment project. Thanks to lottery funding, the museum's collection of artifacts and mosaics is now displayed in a spacious modern environment that brings Roman Britain to life.
Beard was chosen from 12 short-listed contractors after demonstrating an empathy with the design team and a successful track record of past work in the museum and heritage sector.
The most challenging aspect of the project was the transformation of the Roman gallery, where a new mezzanine level gives visitors a new vantage point from which look down on three large 2,000 year-old floor mosaics that were installed in the museum during the 1930s.
The floor mosaics were too fragile to be moved, so the Beard team protected them from falling masonry and groundwater by encasing them in a robust and waterproof blockwork structure.
The Beard team removed the existing concrete floor and created new pile foundations for the mezzanine's steel frame and a stone display column. We then demolished the concrete roof, erected the steel frame and poured a new concrete floor, all the time ensuring that the mosaics came to no harm. After raising the height of the existing walls, we created a new roof structure and installed a passenger lift to the mezzanine.
The foyer area, now a bright and airy display space, features a new, pitched ceiling and an expanse of glazed curtain walling that casts natural light onto the spectacular 'hare' mosaic on the wall facing visitors as they arrive. The project also modernised the main entrance, so that people now walk in through a wide enclosed lobby and a glazed sliding doorway.
The Beard team also built the museum's new Learning Centre, which is used for school visits, talks, seminars, lectures and community events. The centre has retractable seating for 60, computer projection, and its own separate entrance, foyer and cloakrooms.
As part of the same project, Beard also modernised the museum's store at Northleach by installing services, heating and staff facilities, and creating a range of temperature-controlled environments for the museum's priceless collections.
Challenges and solutions
Access to the site was through an entrance only 1.8 metres wide, so the Beard team assembled piling equipment on site and used small plant to move materials and steel sections.
Cirencester was Britain's second largest town in Roman times. To protect any undiscovered remains, the Beard team excavated the new foundations with guidance from archaeological experts.
The concrete pile foundations had to be installed within two metres of 2,000 year-old Roman floor mosaics that could not be moved. Working with consultants from Cliveden Conservation Workshop, the Beard team regularly carried out tests for vibration and other potential hazards that could disturb the mosaics.
