The stone marking Henry VIII's foundation of the Royal Naval Dockyard at Deptford 500 years ago has been rediscovered behind a false wall at University College London (UCL). UCL has pledged to return this significant find to Deptford Dockyard.

Bearing the initials of Henry VIII and his first queen, Katherine of Aragon, with a marriage knot, the stone belongs to the original naval storehouse built by order of the king in 1513. The stone was rediscovered by Chris Mazeika of local community group Deptford Is. His research on the Tudor-era dockyard led him to a 1950s drawing of the artifact. On a chance visit to UCL, Chris glimpsed the stone in the geography department, where it had lain forgotten for over 50 years since it was salvaged from the bomb-damaged dockyard after World War II. Following its discovery, WMF Britain and Dr. Negley Harte, Hon. Fellow and Hon. Research Fellow in history at UCL, helped secure the university's gift.

Deptford Dockyard was included on the 2014 World Monuments Watch along with the adjacent Sayes Court Garden in order to raise awareness of the rich heritage of the area, where there are currently plans for a large-scale redevelopment. The mayor of London plans to make a decision on the redevelopment proposal in March.

(Pictured left to right in front of the foundation stone are Sally MacDonald, Director of Museums and Public Engagement, UCL; Dr. Negley Harte, UCL; Chris Mazeika, Deptford Is; and Dr. Jonathan Foyle, Chief Executive of WMF Britain.)  

In 2010 WMF and the Palace Museum in Beijing established a formal training program that applies traditional Chinese craftsmanship and modern conservation practice to the treatment of furniture and architectural interiors. Known by the acronym CRAFT, this program builds on the long-term partnership between WMF and the Palace Museum developed for the conservation of the Qianlong Garden. CRAFT has quickly evolved into China's first master's degree program in conservation, offered through Tsinghua University. The program involves technical exchange, lectures by an international faculty, and hands-on training.

In the fall of 2013, two graduates from the first CRAFT class (fifth and sixth from right in the photo) came to New York for a seven-week internship in the Sherman Fairchild Center for Objects Conservation at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, sponsored by WMF and the museum. There they worked with museum staff on the conservation of the Met's collection of Chinese furniture. The two CRAFT interns learned new examination methods and conservation techniques that will facilitate their work in the Qianlong Garden. Their counterparts in the Metropolitan Museum were exposed to the interns' intimate knowledge of Chinese furniture and traditional woodworking techniques. The mutual knowledge gained during this internship will also help strengthen the conservation network within China by allowing the Palace Museum to share its expertise with other museums, and help build a stronger cooperative relationship with conservation professionals internationally.