Wellington Town Hall

Following the 1931 Hawke’s Bay earthquake, the original capitals, dentils and parapet balustrade were removed from Wellington Town Hall, leaving its exterior columns stripped of much of their architectural detail. With the original features no longer available, FDL was commissioned to recreate them using historic photographs as the primary reference.

The project required the decorative details visible in the old photographs to be interpreted and reproduced as three-dimensional fibreglass components. Two sizes of ornate Corinthian capital were created to fit over the existing columns, along with replacement dentils and parapet balustrade elements.

Fibreglass was well suited to reproducing the capitals’ intricate shapes and repeated details while creating components that were comparatively lightweight and practical to install. FDL managed the complete project, from site measurement and manufacture through to final installation.

The completed work restored important architectural character to the Town Hall façade while retaining the appearance of the original decorative features.