The statue of Penzance’s most famous son, Sir Humphry Davy, was given a special steam clean on Wednesday 3 June, gently removing the build up of organic material, and revealing his sparkling white, marble physique.
Penzance Council cleans and maintains six memorials and monuments across the parish, including:
• Eileen McGrigor Memorial, Newlyn
• Fisherman Memorial, Newlyn Green
• Humphry Davy Statue, Market Jew Street
• Mousehole War Memorial
• Newlyn War Memorial
• Penzance War Memorial, Battery Rocks
A number of these are listed and strict guidance applies as to how they should be cleaned and maintained. The wrong types of cleaning products can damage memorials, and in some cases, even scrubbing with water may inadvertently cause damage to surfaces or inscriptions.
As such, Penzance Council has adopted the current recommended method of statue and memorial cleaning utilising hot steam at low pressure. This methodology provides the most effective, but least aggressive form of cleaning.
Current guidance recommends undertaking cleaning as little as possible to minimise the chances of damage being caused. For this reason, it is important to ensure that the most effective form of cleaning is being used.
Over the past few days, Penzance Council contractors CCS Commercial Cleaning Ltd has professionally cleaned all of the memorials and statues in the parish which are maintained by the council, utilising the hot steam method.
