Rattee & Kett, Cambridgeshire-based masonry specialists with a 161-year track record, decided it was time to look after number one, namely founder James Rattee and his relations.

Having discovered the Rattee tombstone in the Cambridge City Graveyard off Mill Road, and finding it in rather a neglected and sorry state, the current Directors of Rattee & Kett volunteered to clean and restore the stone.

Carved in the family-owned workshops, the stone marks the graves of James Rattee, co-founder of the company, and members of his family.

Over the past 150 years, pollution and the climate had taken their toll, leaving the stone dull and damaged.

“The stone was carefully cleaned by hand, using natural bristle brushes and clean water,” says Rattee & Kett Director Andy Brown, although adding: “We were mindful not to over clean and remove the fantastic patina that naturally builds up on such English limestones.”

Open joints were carefully repointed with lime mortar, loose embellishments reattached with stainless steel armatures, and finally a biocide applied to the monument to inhibit future organic growth.

Steve Ralph, Co-Director at Rattee & Kett, says: “Fittingly, adjacent to the Rattee memorial is the Kett family grave. We felt we had a duty of care over the family tombs of the two men who formed one of the country’s finest building and restoration companies.

“Their legacy was to build and restore some of the finest buildings in the country, and the least we can do is to ensure their memorials are kept likewise.”