Clavell Tower in Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset – itself a World Heritage Site – has been taken down brick by brick and reassembled in order to stop it sliding into the sea.

The Grade II-listed building was metres from an eroding cliff edge, but The Landmark Trust began to dismantle its 16,272 stones in September 2006 and the tower has now been rebuilt 25m back from the drop. Specialist stonemasons have also carved 298 new stones to replace missing sections.

The final stone was laid at a topping out ceremony yesterday (25 February), but there is still work to be done on refitting the interior.

Peter Pearce, director at the Landmark Trust, said, “This is a significant milestone in the project to save Clavell Tower and a testament to the dedication of the contractors who have been subjected to the full force of Britain’s weather over the last 18 months to get us to this stage.

“They should also be congratulated on the standard of workmanship. The tower’s future as a much loved local landmark is now secure. Its new life as a place for people to stay and enjoy begins in September.”

Once work is completed, the tower will be let out for short stays through Landmark Trust and will be available to visit by appointment and on public open days.

Funding for the project, which cost £898,000 came from the Heritage Lottery Fund, Country Houses Foundation and Dorset County Council, as well as private individuals.

The tower – which inspired Thomas Hardy’s Wessex Poems and PD James’s The Black Tower – was built as an observatory and folly in 1830 by Reverand John Richards Clavell of Smedmore.