Stairways to heaven and other places

We go up and down them all the time - but seldom do we think about their historical development as elements of architecture. Staircases: History, Repair and Conservation , co-edited by architectural historian Dr James Campbell, places a neglected topic at centre stage. Like doorways and windows, stairs convey messages about the status and function of the environments that they are part of. James Campbell Students of architecture visiting Dr James Campbell's rooms in Queens' College, Cambridge, tramp up a steep winding flight of wooden stairs constructed in the 18th century and arrive on a narrow landing where they knock on the door marked with his name. The staircase they ascend and descend is typical of many in the older colleges at Oxford and Cambridge, uncarpeted and scuffed smooth by generations of undergraduate feet. Its timber treads and risers were made over two centuries ago by skilled carpenters or joiners specialising in the art. Repaired countless times over the centuries, how much original timber remains is anyone's guess.