Edjercatshun...education...I have seen piles of bricks passed off as artworks...ditto old tyres

Yes the original stone came from Caen too, so it's the same material used when the cathedral was being built. It isn't really soft, but not as hard as Portland stone. Ahoh...I've been rumbled! How did you guess, Phil?

No you are not going to use the chippings as a work of art...

Thanks Hazel for the answer, I find it very fascinating. Is it the original stone that they had used for the cathedral ? Are they soft ?

I'm hoping next week I'll find my own modern day version of Michelangelo's David in there... should he be called 'Dave'?! The stone used for the cathedral comes from Caen, France. They say it's about 120 million years old. All that dust and chippings on the floor, swept away at the end of the day and put in the skip - I just wanted to gather it all up and keep it!

Wonderful we are kept so well informed. Could you tell us from where the stones come from ?

Glad to hear you are chipping away to the ashlar...then you will be a mason...it's in there, all you have to do is remove the bits you don't need