West London: Burton Mausoleum gets makeover

Burton Mausoleum

Extensive conservation work has begun on one of the English Catholic Church's most unusual mausoleums.

The tomb of Sir Richard Burton and his wife, Isabel, in the graveyard of St Mary Magdalen Church in Mortlake near Richmond, is shaped like a Bedouin tent. It is being fully renovated for the first time in more than three decades to prevent it from falling into disrepair.

Sir Richard was one of the Victorian era's greatest explorers, and when he died in 1890, his devout Catholic wife designed and commissioned the mausoleum as their final resting place. For inspiration, she drew on the tent they used during their excursions into the Syrian desert following his appointment as British Consul in Damascus in 1869.

Work on the Grade II monument, will take three months and should be completed by the end of the year. The tomb was carved from Forest of Dean sandstone to give the impression that it is rippling in the breeze.

Under the plans, the vault, which incorporates Christian and Islamic symbols, is hoped to be reopened to the public for the first time in over 60 years.

The works are being led by Habitats & Heritage, a Richmond-based charity that works to protect and enhance the historic and natural environment of south and west London.

Dr Helen Brown, conservation and interpretation officer at Habitats & Heritage, said: "Its unique structure and fascinating contents make it a nationally important heritage site.

"The original stone door was vandalised in the 1950s and has been blocked off to the public ever since. As an alternative, vandalism to a stained-glass window at the time of the break-in, allowed the provision of a toughened clear-glass window, allowing a view of the interior.

"Reinstating the external door will allow visitors to engage more closely with the site while also enabling greater conservation and ongoing maintenance of the interior and collection."

A controversial figure, Sir Richard wrote extensively about the Middle East and Asia, introducing a broader Victorian audience to the Islamic world.

He is most remembered for his journey to locate the source of the River Nile.

A brilliant linguist, he translated One Thousand and One Nights and The Perfumed Garden and published the Kama Sutra in English.

Lady Isabel was also a writer and explorer. She travelled to four continents with her husband and prided herself on being a proficient traveller, content to endure the rough conditions of 19th-century travel.

Habitats & Heritage has been awarded a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant of £249,000 for the project, £80,000 of which has been earmarked for the restoration and rest will deliver an extensive educational program unlocking its secrets for a new generation. It includes interactive learning experiences designed to engage audiences in the rich history of the Burton Mausoleum.

Father Adrian McKenna, parish priest of St Mary Magdalen's church, said: "Visitors find the Mausoleum in all sorts of ways, some just stumble across it whilst strolling along the Thames towpath and others seek it out. In the past six months alone, we've had just under 11,000 individual visits to our Google Maps site to view details of the Mausoleum.

"In 1877, Sir Richard agreed to let his wife arrange for his baptism in the Catholic Church and to call upon a priest if he was in danger of death, so that he could receive the Last Rites - the 'Sacrament of the Sick,' allowing him to be 'fortified by the Church' and brought to the mercy of God.

"With Sir Richard barely conscious on his deathbed, it took Lady Isabel two attempts (and much persuasion) to find an Italian priest in Trieste who would anoint him with the words 'Go forth Christian soul.'"

Fr McKenna said: "Three years prior to his death Lady Isabel had arranged for Sir Richard to be baptised when he was unconscious from a heart attack. On his recovery, Sir Richard took this action in good part, but apparently without attaching much significance to it. His considerable interest in religion seems to have been more anthropological rather than a matter of faith, but God alone knows the real and conscious choices Sir Richard made in life."