Gothic Cathedral Architectural Model

Architectural models are one of the few ornaments that reward close looking. This one reproduces a great twin-spired Gothic cathedral in cast metal alloy, and the casting is fine enough to pick out the tracery in the windows, the ribs running up the towers and the stepped buttresses along the flanks. From across the room it reads as a dark, elegant silhouette; up close it turns into hundreds of small architectural decisions.

The antique bronze finish is deliberately uneven, darker in the recesses and rubbed brighter along the raised edges, which is how real bronze ages and what stops a small metal object looking flat. The weight is part of the appeal too: solid alloy rather than hollow plating, so it sits with authority on a desk or a shelf and does not skid when the surface is knocked.

It suits a study, a bookcase among architecture and history titles, an office desk, or a hallway console. Travellers tend to buy landmark models as a memory of a trip, and this is a considerably better version of that than the usual gift shop keyring. Dust it with a soft dry brush, working into the spires and window openings where dust settles, and avoid liquid polishes, which will strip the patina unevenly.

• Cast metal alloy with antique bronze finish
• Fine detail on tracery, spires and buttresses
• Hand-applied patina, highlights rubbed back
• Solid rather than hollow, sits firmly on a desk
• Free standing, no assembly required
• Dust with a soft dry brush
• Do not use liquid metal polish
• Decorative ornament, keep out of reach of small children