I don't think that an 'agreed coding could work if colours were fixed at
absolute dates (e.g. 16th century = orange), but a relative scale (red
for earliest through to violet for latest, for example) might work.
The actual colours to use are also important to meet accessibility
standards: colours should be selected which are perceived as distinct to
people with colour blindness, and no colour perception (see the RNIB
'see it right' guidelines for further information - there's also an
interesting website, whose url temporarily escapes me, that shows
pictures and diagrams as might be seen by people with various types of
colour blindness - it also advertises software which will take your
diagram and change its colours so they become distinct. The tone to be
used will be partially determined by context: the bright sunlight (????)
occasionally experienced in a site interpretation plaque at 1m from the
viewer calls for different tones than a paper plan, and a computer
screen is so dependent on users that specification is meaningless!
The history of a building will also, perhaps, determine which colour
represents which date. Based on the principles of good cartography, you
may not wish to place colours similar in hue and tone close together -
and in one building 11th and 12th century may be close together and 13th
distinct, while in another 11th and 13th my be close together, but 12th
distinct (bother those people in the past, why couldn't they build nice
logical buildings!)
With best wishes,
Pat
In message <002601c3eb49$77490540$f071e150@johnwin2k>, john winstone
<[log in to unmask]> writes
> Is there yet an agreed colour coding for the dates of building
> fabric when preparing historic building surveys?
>
> I suppose this could simply be a series of colours for periods 1
> and onwards. Alternatively, by centuries, or simply a sequence of
> colours that the building historian could apply to the dated
> sequence in hand. I could of course invent one, but it seems to me
> it would be a great help in reading drawings for there to be an
> agreed sequence for all to use and so recognise.
>
> This is not of course as straightforward as it sounds. Simple
> enough with plan and section projections, but as far as surfaces
> are concerned - floors or walls for instance where fabric dates may
> vary from the enclosing walls - I think they need to be light tints
> of the period in question. Otherwise a rendering easily becomes
> garish.
>
> Can anyone tell me where I could find such an agreed code, if I've
> missed it please.
>
> John Winstone RIBA IHBC
--
Pat Reynolds
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"It might look a bit messy now,
but just you come back in 500 years time"
(T. Pratchett)
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