DORSET BUILDING STONE
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Pierre de Caen (Caen Stone) - Middle Jurassic - NW France (Lead Author WGT)

Picture
Columns of Caen Stone at Netley Abbey. Photo: PJB

The best-known finest quality stone used for ornamental work in English Cathedrals and Churches is the Pierre de Caen which is the upper part of the Calcaire de Caen (Caen Limestone Formation).  It is a cream-coloured fossiliferous Middle Jurassic limestone (contemporaneous with the Bath Stone of England), quarried above and below ground in the area around Caen in Normandy, NW France.  From the 11th century, southern England was the main importer of Caen Stone and again in the 19th century. 
Although the same age as the oolitic Bath Stone, the Pierre de Caen is not oolitic - it is a bioclastic, crinoidal, pelletal, grainstone-packstone.  The Crinoid animal (Sea Lily) feeds by filtering sea water and produces lime mud faecal pellets.  Such pellets (<0.1mm) are common in many Jurassic & Early Cretaceous limestones and comprise most of the fabric of Caen stone.  The ratio of faecal pellets to bioclastic fragments affects the quality of Caen Stone.  The more bioclastic content, the harder and paler the stone.  The bioclastic grains weather proud and can be confused with ooids.  The softer form of Caen Stone is more prone to weathering and has a yellowish colour.
Caen Stone is known in these cathedrals: St Paul’s London, Canterbury, Chichester, Rochester, Durham, Norwich.  Also: Oxford Castle, Tower of London, Hatfield House, Eton College & Netley Abbey. 
In Dorset, the church, stables and schoolroom in Little Bredy were built by Benjamin Ferrey in 1850 using Caen Stone.  Monkton Wyld Church just north of Lyme Regis has Caen Stone dressings (see Churches section) and below.

                                                                                                                                                                WGT/JT Feb 2017 Update WGT Nov 2018
Update 28th Feb 2017 – WGT
Picture
Pierre de Caen Stone - Netley loose. PPL image 4.1mm x 2.8mm.
Picture
Caen Stone is seen in the windows and quoins of Monkton Wyld Church. Externally, the south windows have a lime-wash coating which gives a very white appearance to the stone and carvings but, in places, this cover has worn off to reveal the true cream-colour of this Caen Stone.
Some weathered quoins reveal bioturbation in this saccharoidal bioclastic limestone.
Picture
Picture
Bioclastic micritic limestone with a saccharoidal (sugar-like) texture
​
Picture
Picture
In places the grey algal/fungal coating has flaked off revealing the crumbly creamy Caen Stone.


​
Monkton Wyld Photos & Text WGT 28/2/17
Picture

© DORSET BUILDING STONE
and contributors
  • Home
    • About Us
    • Glossary
    • References and Sources
    • Work in Progress
  • Building stones
    • How we study building stones
    • Palaeogene >
      • Heathstone
      • Sarsens
    • Cretaceous >
      • Chalk
      • Flint
      • Upper Greensand
      • Chert
      • Wealden
      • Purbeck >
        • Upper Purbeck (Purbeck Marble)
        • Upper Purbeck (Broken Shell Lst. aka Burr)
        • Middle Purbeck (Upper Building Stones)
        • Lower Purbeck (Cypris Freestones)
    • Jurassic >
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      • Portland Stone - Dorset
      • Chert
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      • Bridport Sands
      • Junction Bed
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        • Bembridge Limestones - Isle Of Wight
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        • Blue Lias of Somerset
        • Doulting Stone - Somerset
        • Ham Hill Stone - Somerset
        • Portland Limestone – Wilts (Chilmark)
        • Normandy >
          • Pierre de Caen (Caen Stone)
        • Pas de Calais
      • Triassic: White Lias of SE Devon
      • Carboniferous >
        • Carboniferous Limestones: Polished Black
      • Devonian
    • Building Stone Trails >
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    • Stone Index >
      • Stone Index A-B >
        • Abbotsbury Ironstone
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      • Stone Index C-E >
        • Caen Stone
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      • Stone Index F-O >
        • Featherbed Limestone
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        • Middle Lias
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      • Stone Index P-T >
        • Portland Cherty Beds
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      • Stone Index U-Z >
        • Upper Chalk
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        • Weald Clay
        • White Chalk
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        • Yeovil Stone
  • Churches
    • A-Z of Churches
    • East Dorset >
      • Almer
      • Bournemouth >
        • Talbot Village
      • Canford Magna Chapel
      • Corfe Mullen
      • Christchurch Priory
      • Cranborne
      • Edmondsham
      • Gussage All Saints
      • Gussage St. Andrew
      • Hampreston
      • Kinson
      • Knowlton
      • Morden
      • Pamphill
      • Poole St.James
      • Poole, the Spire Church
      • Shapwick
      • Sturminster Marshall
      • Tarrant Crawford
      • Tarrant Keyneston
      • West Parley
      • Wimborne St.Giles
      • Wimborne Minster Exterior Tour
      • Wimborne Minster Interior
      • Wimborne Minster: Purbeck Marble and Decorative Stone
    • Central Dorset >
      • Bloxworth
      • Bradford Peverell
      • Cerne Abbas
      • Hilton
      • Lytchett Matravers
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      • The Piddle Valley >
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        • Alton Pancras
        • Bere Regis
        • Piddlehinton
        • Piddletrenthide
        • Puddletown
        • Tolpuddle
      • Winterborne Tomson
    • North Dorset >
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      • Belchalwell
      • Blandford Parish Church
      • Blandford St. Leonard's Chapel
      • Blandford St. Mary
      • Blandford Cemetery Chapels
      • Bradford Abbas
      • Chetnole
      • Child Okeford
      • Compton Abbas
      • Farnham
      • Folke
      • Gillingham
      • Hammoon
      • Hazelbury Bryan
      • Holnest
      • Ibberton
      • Iwerne Minster
      • Langton Long
      • Leigh
      • Mappowder
      • Margaret Marsh
      • Marnhull
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      • Melbury Bubb
      • Pimperne
      • Okeford Fitzpaine
      • Purse Caundle
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      • Shipton Gorge
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