Tintagel Castle’s thirteenth-century ruins, set among sea-bitten precipices, distinguish one of the most spectacular historic sites in Britain.A place of elemental power and beauty, Tintagel is an outstanding example of a man-made monument interacting with a natural feature. Tintagel’s natural land-bridge, a slender isthmus linking the headland (also known as Island) to the mainland, has been its defining feature for 5,000 ...
Tintagel Castle’s thirteenth-century ruins, set among sea-bitten precipices, distinguish one of the most spectacular historic sites in Britain.A place of elemental power and beauty, Tintagel is an outstanding example of a man-made monument interacting with a natural feature. Tintagel’s natural land-bridge, a slender isthmus linking the headland (also known as Island) to the mainland, has been its defining feature for 5,000 years. The Cornish name Din Tagell, means literally, the Fortress of the Narrow Entrance. This physical connection — a tenuous rocky link much-eroded over the centuries — is the source of its traditions and astonishing cultural resonance.English Heritage, the guardian of this scheduled ancient monument, is now searching for a dedicated and talented architectural and engineering team to design a twenty-first century connection, a clifftop footbridge.Twenty-eight metres higher than the current crossing and 72m in span, the bridge will open up exhilarating views of the Island, coastline and Atlantic seascape as it traces the path — now lost through collapse and erosion — of the original land-link. It is expected to transform the visitor experience.The new structure, the focus of this design competition, should exemplify design at its most assured. English Heritage envisages an elegant, even structurally daring, concept, which is beautiful in its own right and sensitively balanced with the landscape and exceptional surroundings — the site lying within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.This is a two-stage competition; please be aware that at the first stage we are not seeking a design. Teams who progress will need to conceptualise a design at the second stage, which incorporates a construction methodology, in order to mitigate the challenging environment and access constraints.
Login
