Seen from below the finial balls gave symmetry and elegance to the balustrade round the County Hall roof.
From above, I sometimes thought, they got in the way of a good view.
When architects were assessing the work needed on the County Hall roof they found the finial balls were not secure enough. As a result they have been removed, probably until 2012.
The roof has also been closed to the public because of Health and Safety concerns. Better safe than sorry I am afraid.
Looking down from the museum roof, not a huge amount of building activity has happened in July. Archaeological excavations have progressed and more of the earth has the look of being dug over or terraced.
It also looks like a lot of material has been bagged and boxed up for going through with a teaspoon at a later date.
The pitched roofs, so typical of Abingdon’s past, are soon to be joined by the flat roofs of the new flats planned for the Old Gaol development.
Those buildings added in the 1970s, shown here on this Google Maps Image, are gone, and the ground has been cleared.
The Old Gaol now stands like a castle in a large sandpit.
I would guess that the developers are hoping there are no significant finds, and the Abingdon Archaelogical and Historical Society would hope for the opposite.