Should you embrace your inner stonemason? Why our constant desire for change needs a rethink

By Tom Yarrow, Professor of Anthropology, Durham University
Paolo Heywood, Associate Professor, Social Anthropology, Durham University

When John, a stonemason working at Glasgow Cathedral, finishes repairing a section, the highest praise he can receive is that no one notices. “When we get things that come together you just see a couple of wee bits of stone”, he explains. “You don’t actually see the work that went into it. But it’s satisfying getting it to all come back as if it’s never been touched.”

This is the paradox at the heart of skilled conservation work: the better you…

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