Conservation & Collections Care blog

Lantern Project in the Founder’s Entrance (Part 3)

Discoveries

Investigations into the lantern are well underway. (Catch up with what has happened so far by reading Part 1 & 2.)

Specialist contractors Brown & Ralph have begun to look at the side windows of the lantern. After removing the glazing putty from one of the panes of glass, more information about the original intent has been revealed.

Each pane has a central section of etching, with a clear border around the edges. Over the years, as repairs have been done and panes replaced, the putty and paint lines have crept further inwards, making the clear border not visible.

The glass will be removed and cleaned. And, as the glass is reset, the putty line will be restored so that the clear border will be visible again. Looking at the windows as a whole, it is possible to tell which panes have been replaced. The ones with a rose tint are original. As part of this project, we intend to replace the newer non-tinted glass with rose-tinted etched glass in order to return to the original aesthetic.

View of side windows showing difference between old rose-tinted panes and the later non-tinted panes

Keep an eye on the blog – we will keep you updated as the project progresses.

Uncovering Treasures: Conservation of Works on Paper in the Sir Ivor and Lady Batchelor Collection

In 2015 the Fitzwilliam received an exceptional bequest of around 250 works on paper, paintings and applied arts items, the collection of Sir Ivor and Lady Batchelor. Since then, paper conservators and technicians at the Fitzwilliam have undertaken a project to conserve the drawings, watercolours and prints from the gift – documenting, treating and preparing them for archival storage and future display

The Collection

Professor Sir Ivor Batchelor (1916-2015) was an eminent psychiatrist, academic and advisor to the National Health Service. He developed a love of art as a boy and began a lifetime of amateur collecting, later sharing his passion with his wife Honor.¹ They regularly made gifts to the Fitzwilliam throughout the 1990’s, notably enhancing the museum’s collection of drawings by James Ward. The 2015 bequest features predominantly British C19th and C20th drawings, prints and watercolours. Favoured artists include David Cox, Frank Brangwyn, Edwin Henry Landseer, David Wilkie, Muirhead Bone, William Orpen and Walter Sickert, as well as earlier works by James Ward, Heneage Finch, Thomas Rowlandson and others. It was the distinction of great draftsmanship, coupled with affordability, which dictated most of their purchases.

The Conservation Project

The works arrived at the museum in a variety of mounting and framing styles. The condition of the works varied: many were in reasonably good condition, while others had been visibly affected by factors such as light, humidity and contact with degraded mounting and framing materials. Some works (such as the drawings by Walter Sickert) are in themselves made of poor quality papers which show the effects of age much more quickly than better quality artist’s papers.²

Technicians in the Department of Paintings, Drawings and Prints unframed the works, photographing the frames and documenting inscriptions and labels on the frame backboards. The works were placed in folders and stored in archival boxes ready for accessioning by curators.³ Cataloguing in this case is being carried out alongside the conservation project – the process of unframing, examination and treatment sometimes reveals new information about the work, as can be seen in some of the examples discussed below.

Each work is thoroughly examined, photographed and documented by conservators before any treatments are undertaken (as well as during treatment). Many items in the Batchelor collection have only required the removal of old hinges and mounts, pressing and re-mounting.⁴ Others however have required more interventive processes, such as backing removal, stain reduction, washing and various types of repair.

Discovering a new drawing

David Cox The Foot of the Cliff, graphite pencil on paper (232 x 155mm) PD.75-2015

Removing this graphite drawing by David Cox (1783-1859) from its acidic backboard revealed another image on the reverse of the sheet – a roughly executed watercolour of a rocky landscape and some figures in pencil – probably dating from around the same time, as this page previously formed part of a sketchbook. Old adhesive was removed, the sheet was pressed and the work was mounted in a ‘double-sided mount’ so both sides of the paper can be viewed and also protected.⁵

Exposing the verso drawing during the backing removal process

Doodles and marginalia

Frank Brangwyn, A Rhinoceros, a study for the British Empire panels, graphite pencil and red ink on paper (227 x 267mm). PD.60-2015. The drawing in its old window mount, with edges of the drawing covered.

This studio drawing by Frank Brangwyn (1867-1956) was soiled and creased with some prominent stains caused by the old acidic window mount. The window also partly covered the artist’s inscription and completely obscured other interesting drawings around the edges of the paper. It was decided to remount the work showing the entire sheet. Due to the sensitive nature of the red ink, cleaning and stain reduction could only be done ‘locally’. The newly mounted sheet looks much less cramped and gives us greater insight into the way the artist worked.

Showing the edges of the work after treatment

Out-foxing the Foxing

John, Gwen (1876-1939), An adolescent girl, standing in a landscape, charcoal on pale buff paper, (232 x 155 mm). PD.207-2015. After treatment.

The chalk media of this drawing by Gwen John (1876-1939) was fresh and unfixed. However, the machine-made paper was poor-quality and severely discoloured overall. There were several disfiguring large brown stains, or ‘foxing spots’ scattered across the image area⁶ The spots were treated with water and alcohol followed by careful bleaching and a final rinsing. By using a ‘suction point’, the stain removal process was carefully controlled – the spots no longer detract from the delicately drawn image.

Removing foxing spots using the suction point

Emerging from the Darkness

William Orpen, Self Portrait graphite pencil on paper. (191 x 153mm). PD.147-2015. After treatment.

The buff-coloured sketchbook paper used by William Orpen (1878-1931) for this sketch was of an inherently poor quality and had become acidic, dark and brittle. The sheet was undulating and distorted from old self-adhesive tape holding it in place. After removal from the mount and testing of the media, the drawing was given several washes in cool then warm de-ionized water to release the acids and impurities and re-invigorate the paper. It was then lined with a carefully chosen light-weight Japanese paper and starch paste to provide the paper with extra strength and support for the future.

The Outcome

Whether the conservation work is preventive or interventive, the end result is gratifying – the treated works are now stabilized and ready to be accessed for viewing, display or loan. They are now protected by their new museum-quality acid-free mounts and are stored safely in high-quality Solander boxes.⁷ After treatment, high-resolution digital photographs are taken before the works are returned to the climate controlled Prints and Drawings store. The Batchelor Collection conservation project for works on paper is ongoing and there will be an exhibition of selected works from the collection at the Fitzwilliam in 2018.

Completed mounted works in their Solander box

All images © The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge unless otherwise credited.

With thanks to Richard Farleigh, Gwendoline Lemee and Jane Munro for their assistance.

Lantern Project in the Founder’s Entrance (Part 2)

Atlantes and lantern side windows viewed from scaffold platform

Protection during installation of scaffolding

The installation of scaffolding took several weeks. During this time, there was a great awareness of the potential risk to the historic interiors and the collections in surrounding galleries. There were several methods of protection in place, to minimise risk from physical damage (e.g. knocks, scratches), as well as dust.

Foam and plywood were used to protect the historic mosaic floor. Sculptures which could not be moved were boxed in.

Nearby objects were protected from potential knocking and additional dust fall.

During the scaffold construction, the balustrade, bannisters and floor were boarded. Boards underneath scaffold legs ensured the additional load to the floor was spread. The scaffolding was cleaned before coming into the building, and clean wood was used. There was an increased risk of dust ingress as the front door would have to be left open while materials were moved into the building, so additional dust protection was in place; plastic sheeting proved invaluable to minimise dust movement to surrounding galleries.

Up close

Scaffold platform aptly nicknamed ”The Ballroom”

Now the scaffolding is up, survey work has begun and it provides a rare opportunity to get up close and personal with the lantern interior. Not only do we need to establish the extent of any deterioration or damage to the building and its decorative interiors, but also if we can understand the causes.

For example, staining in the dust below the side windows indicates that there has been condensation or water ingress. Closer inspection of the internal timber reveals that there is a condensation tray at the base of the lantern side windows. This design originally allows for collected condensation to flow through an outlet pipe to the outside. It may be that the pipes have been blocked by insects, causing the tray to overflow. To stop this happening in the future, we need to confirm the cause and either make modifications to the design or ensure changes to the maintenance of the current pipework.

Interior condensation tray with pipe leading outside

We are still at the early stages of the project, and so survey of the plasterwork and internal decoration are ongoing.

We shall keep you updated as the project progresses – watch this space!

It’s on my Christmas list: The Hirox 3 D Digital Microscope

Earlier in the year a small group of Fitzwilliam conservators were given fascinating insight into the new and latest Hirox 3D Digital Microscope, PC Edition (RH-2000). A pretty sophisticated bit of ‘non destructive analytical kit’ by any comparison. Neat and tidy, with an impressive ability to process complex data fast.

As is often the case in conservation this technology has been developed for and embraced by other industries requiring ‘close scrutiny and exacting quality control’ such as precision engineering, electronics and other fast emerging fields such as nanotechnology. So, conservation sitting on these rather better funded coattails by way of mutual benefit, is no bad thing. Thank you, Formula One.

On the day, the brothers Alessandro and Marco Brecciaroli (representing Hirox) smoothly and in a charming way, guided us through the system. All too often in life it is difficult to make the full and appropriate use of a piece of equipment until one knows ‘just what it may be capable of’ and believe you me, Hirox is no slouch!

We were keen to see just how such a clever microscope could help in the field of Conservation. Could it extend the parameters of observation and perhaps more specifically, enhance our understanding. Quite possibly, and as such, this was an opportunity too good to miss.

Several of us brought museum objects with us on the day, mostly small and necessarily portable by way of putting Hirox through its paces – real objects under real scrutiny.

These included an early stained glass fragment, a painted swatch of powdery blue pigment, an intriguing small Egyptian coffin, a pre prepared pigment cross section cast in resin and a surface detail from a rare 19th century French watercolour painting.

Early stained glass fragment

Post medieval stained glass panel (4230a Department of Applied Arts)
A studio photograph using a conventional camera

Hirox got up close and personal and the revelations, to say the very least, were impressive.

In the detail above, courtesy of Hirox, we see the black tracing line, subsequent coating of blue enamel and the surface disruption to the glass below.

The glass surface is mildly scratched, it contains inclusions of sand (most probably silicate not fully melted during the original glass making process) and has a number of small ‘alluring air bubbles’, held captive since the middle of the seventeenth century!

The decorative element is now cracked and there are several small losses. As such, this particular artefact is somewhat at risk from further flaking.

Key features of Hirox

-Wonderful graphic quality, breath-taking magnification and the ability to capture and merge multiple images and/or create videos. And if that were not enough Hirox can be fitted with an endoscope enabling the investigation inside of an object.

-Uncompromising picture sharpness and reduced Digital Noise by way of ‘smart focusing’ and a camera that boasts the capacity to take somewhere between 50-100 frames per second, all at high resolution (1920 x 1200 pixel).

-Lighting is versatile, delivered by Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) at a colour temperature of 5700 Kelvin. Various options include: Reflected, Transmitted, Bright Field / Dark Field and Polarization. Lighting with an Ultra Violet spectral range of 200-400 nanometres is also available if required. It would be prudent to check on both the emitted and cumulative light levels in particular and with regard any potentially light sensitive items.

-A broad range of high quality lenses are available anywhere from 1:1 to a staggering 10,000 x and numerous variant thereof. The changing of lenses appeared quick and easy by way of a bayonet fitting.

What soon became clear is that the examination of a small sample size and/or object was somewhat easier. For larger items one would require more careful planning and adequate space in order to engage the services of a bespoke and importantly ‘stable jig’.

Another option includes the use of a portable contact hand held lens.

Painted swatch of powdery blue pigment

Something as simple as the inclusion of a scale, seen here below in ‘microns’, is especially useful whether making a passing assessment or perhaps more so, by way of any future comparison.

The above image illustrates a powdery blue pigment part coated with a white waxy Cyclododecane¹ consolidant – in this case applied via an aerosol and now part sublimated (evaporated).

Small Egyptian coffin

c. 600 BC / before the Common Era

The coffin surface is heavily deteriorated leaving very little of the original decoration and as such, one is left searching for clues. Hirox affords a different viewpoint and to some extent ‘a journey into the unknown’.

A small Egyptian wooden Coffin (E.43. 1907 Department of Antiquities)
44 cm (L), 13 cm (W), 14 cm (D)

Video footage across the coffin surface

The pigment trace seen in this short video is Egyptian Blue². The remnant is trapped in one of the cracks of the coffin’s surface and although not wholly surprising it does indicate that the entire ‘wig decoration’ would have originally been painted in blue. This sort of information not only helps in our understanding of the object but it also allows for a far more accurate interpretation.

Pigment cross section

An example of a ‘stitched image’ captured by Hirox

Calcium ground Egyptian Blue pigment Varnish layer

Cross section of a paint sample containing Egyptian Blue (in this case a minute pigment sample was cast in resin and polished, prior to viewing).

19th century French watercolour

France, Normandy to be precise. The handy work of just who ?

This rare artwork will be on display at the Fitzwilliam Museum in the autumn of 2017 in what promises to be an exquisite show. The maker will be revealed and much more besides.

A gum glaze over watercolour Surface abrasion

A close surface detail of a watercolour painting showing assorted fingerprints and other interesting information

3 dimensional modelling

Art meets science and maths, ooh and some pretty impressive graphics.

Real time measurements including length, angle and the surface area can be captured detailing the terrain and presented various styles. For obvious reasons, this sort of data could prove invaluable by way of comparison should the need arise, post loan or perhaps, assisting with an on going object ‘condition appraisal’.

3D Modelling of the powdery blue pigment part surface coated with Cyclododecane wax (see the earlier image of the same by way of comparison)

Like so many things in life, in order to capitalize on any investment (prices start from around £60,000 at the time of writing) one would have to give Hirox time and with that time one could reap bountiful rewards.

As such, I remain hopeful this Christmas!

For more information visit:

www.hirox.com

Alex Brecciaroli, Sales & Technical UK

alex@sharedlabseurope.com

www.sharedlabseurope.com

Thanks go to Alessandro and Marco Brecciaroli for their captivating introduction to this impressive piece of equipment and also, to my many ‘kind and resourceful’ museum colleagues.

The challenges of use and display

Books in a museum context have the particular challenge of being objects of study as well as objects of display. The beautifully decorated leather bindings which make the Founder’s Library such a grand historic interior also hold contents of great interest and therefore serve several purposes, both decorative and functional.

To commemorate the 400 years since the death of William Shakespeare, a small exhibition was put together last year at the Fitzwilliam Museum: ‘All the world’s a stage’: Shakespeare in Publication and Performance. Two of the books chosen¹ to be displayed had loose or detached boards as well as worn corners and endcaps which would have affected their display. After consultation between the curator and the conservators, we decided to undertake conservation treatment firstly for the books to be displayed safely and look cared for but also, in a much bigger scale, to restore their flexibility and allow them to be consultated safely by readers.

Both books are second impressions of William Shakespeare’s work, printed in 1632. They are now in an early 19th century binding. The beautifully decorated bindings were covering a poorly made structure as some 19th century practices are known to put more importance into the aesthetic of the book rather than its mechanical function. The ’Russia calf’ leather used for the covering of the binding had become brittle over time due to its acidic nature. Joints are usually the first area to break down as they are subject to a lot of stress.

We had two weeks prior to the exhibition to restore and even improve the accessibility of the content of the books by re-attaching the loose boards in a flexible and durable way. Re-attaching boards can be done in many ways and these books provide a good example of two different techniques we use.

The possibility to lift the gilded spine or not usually determines which technique we will use. If the spine is fairly easy to lift without falling into pieces, we will go for a re-back², otherwise, we will reduce the lifting to a minimum and insert small strips of cloth underneath patches of leather. For the first book, the spine could be lifted so we decided to do a re-back.

18-1-g-14-t-4-2 — Cleaning the spine after lifting the original leather

After lifting the leather spine from the book and cleaning the spine from residues of old brittle glue, a wide strip of aerolinen³ was adhered to the spine. The aerolinen was then stuck with paste and EVA⁴ in the previously split boards in order to re-attach them to the text-block.

18-1-g-14-t-12-2 — Lifting the leather along the joints with a knife

18-1-g-14-t-17-2 — Adhere a hollow on the spine

The leather on the boards was lifted away along the spine edge and trimmed along the gold- tooled line. A hollow back⁵ made of Heritage Archival pHotokraft paper was adhered onto the spine and the book was re-backed with new toned leather.

18-1-g-14-t-24-2 — Re-back with new piece of toned leather

The original spine was then re-adhered onto the book and the missing areas on the spine leather were filled with Japanese paper and toned with acrylic paint to match the leather on the spine.

18-1-g-14-t-29-2 — After re-adhering the original leather on the spine

This treatment should be very long-lasting as the joints are now supported with aerolinen and new leather. Endcaps have also been restored in the process of re-backing and the original spine is now well supported.

The second book was quite another story. The leather was too brittle for the whole spine to be lifted away without losing the decoration and the sewing was in good condition which means that the spine didn’t need to be treated. Therefore, the leather was only lifted along the edges of the panels to allow tabs of aerolinen to be adhered to the spine and onto the boards to form a strong but flexible attachment.

img_6717-2 — Aerolinen tabs extending from the joint

When these repairs were dry the original leather was readhered with a mixture of EVA and wheat-starch paste. The joints were then covered by a thin strip of Japanese paper⁶ to prevent slight cracks from developing. Paper repair patches were toned in situ using Golden’s acrylic paints and the whole binding was furbished with two light coats of Renaissance microcrystalline wax

img_6727-2 — Adhering a strip of Japanese paper along the joint

This treatment is very efficient as it is much less time-consuming than a re-back but strong enough to hold the boards to the book when the rest of the binding is in good condition.

Both books have kept their aesthetical value which is extremely important in the context of historic libraries. They will still be able to fulfil their decorative role as well as being accessible and available for researchers and readers.

Lantern Project in the Founder’s Entrance (Part 1)

The Fitzwilliam Museum is about to undertake a major building conservation project in the Founder’s Entrance. The focus will be on the lantern at the very top of the building.

The Founder’s building was first opened to the public in 1848 and the maintenance and preservation of the historic features is paramount. As a Grade 1 listed building, it is a priority to ensure it will remain resilient long into the future.

This project will look to address a variety of different aspects, including the replacement of some of the gutters and rain water pipes to prevent leaks. Repairs and replacement of some of the damaged curved glass and glazing compound (which holds the glass in place) will be done. Conservation work to the internal decorative plasterwork and balustrade will also be undertaken.

Work has already begun in preparation for the scaffold installation: the sculptures that usually sit on the first floor landing have been boxed up and put into storage for safekeeping.

From the end of April, a large scaffold platform will be installed across the whole of the Founder’s Entrance to allow access to the lantern. This will mean that the Entrance Hall will need to be closed to visitors for a few weeks. Once the scaffold is up and false ceiling put in, visitors will be able to visit the Hall once again.

This project will continue into early 2018. Please keep an eye on the Conservation and Collections Care blog for updates and photos.

Miraculous Madonna Make-overs: Preparations for the ‘Madonnas and Miracles: Private Devotion in Renaissance Italy’ exhibition, March 7th – June 4th, 2017

Every now and again, an upcoming exhibition at the Fitzwilliam Museum provides a welcome opportunity to carry out much needed conservation treatment on important works from the Museum’s collection of paintings. While these works may in fact normally be on display in the permanent galleries, and their general state of preservation is stable and acceptable, they have not necessarily received further attention from the Museum’s conservators since they came into the collection many years ago.

Paintings sitting in the same spot on a gallery wall year after year are not usually scrutinised in the same way as works emerging into the light after a long period in storage. It is often a challenge to find the time and opportunity to look at something very familiar with fresh eyes! However, for each of the five paintings that were given a session of careful TLC by staff and students at The Hamilton Kerr Institute before entering this special exhibition, the visual changes resulting from the treatments were more drastic than initially anticipated. While the size, style and colour scheme in these works are in one sense quite different, they are also all depictions of tender moments between the Virgin Mary and the Christ Child, painted to serve as devotional pieces for private worshippers in the 15^th and 16^th centuries. The removal of discoloured varnish layers, mismatched overpaint and centuries of dirt, transformed the images and revealed paintings of even greater colouristic beauty and refinement than could be appreciated previously.

Figure 1: Detail showing the back of the Virgin and Child during the removal of centuries worth of dirt. Brilliant colours were revealed within a trompe-l’œil frame, which surrounds a depiction of a fantastical marble slab.

The small Virgin and Child, tentatively attributed to Pietro di Niccolo da Orvieto (c.1430-84) although its iconography and decorative elements could suggest a considerably earlier date, has always been on display showing only its front. When it was recently taken off the wall for a closer assessment however, it became evident that the back is also well worth looking at. Just like the front, the back was originally prepared with a smooth, white gesso ground. A convincing trompe l’oeil frame was then painted to surround an image that was initially very hard to make out through the thick dirt layer that has accumulated through the centuries. As cleaning progressed, a brilliantly colourful, fictive marble slab emerged (figure 1).

The panel was subjected to x-radiography, which revealed how the timber structure was put together prior to the gesso application (figure 2). Four individual moulding profiles were nailed to the face of the panel with three to four nails along each side, which were bent to lie flush with the back prior to the gesso application, thus sealing them within the structure.

Figure 2: The x-radiograph of the Virgin and Child shows the x-ray opaque nails employed to attach the frame profiles to the main panel prior to the application of gesso, paint and gilding.

Although the front of the panel was also somewhat obscured by dirt and varnish, it had clearly been cleaned at least once in the past. Remarkably, most of the decorative scheme is still in rather good condition.

Even though the painting’s style owes much to the stylised and somewhat flattened depictions of the Madonna and Child in the Byzantine icon tradition, the Virgin’s outer garment, the maphorion, was still surprisingly dark and flat compared to the other passages in the painting (figure 3). However, infrared reflectography showed how folds were in fact present in the maphorion (figure 4). Dark overpaint obscured these folds to the naked eye, and careful removal of this non-original layer revealed the original, but worn, blue colour of the garment, painted with two paint layers containing the blue mineral pigment, azurite (figure 5). The top layer has rather large pigment particles, which would have resulted in a rich, velvety surface. Good quality azurite was deliberately employed coarsely ground, because with further grinding, it loses its intensity of colour and turns increasingly grey. The gritty surface resulting from the use of a coarse pigment would have rendered it vulnerable to wear and absorbent to later applications of medium and overpaint, leading to the darkening effect that gives the misleading impression of a black paint passage.

As a result of careful cleaning and a changed approach to display, the beauty of both front and back of this small, devotional object can once again be appreciated in the current exhibition, where it sits in a vitrine allowing both sides to be seen.

Seven painting conservators spent nearly 600 hours on careful conservation and restoration work up to the ‘Madonnas and Miracles: Private Devotion in Renaissance Italy’ exhibition, and if these madonnas have indeed become familiar faces on the walls of the Museum’s permanent collection, they are certainly well worth a second glance, restaged alongside other devotional objects for the duration of the show, which runs from March 7^th to June 4^th.

To read about the conservation work and painting techniques of the School of Botticelli tondo and of the Joos van Cleve Virgin and Child, follow this link to the Hamilton Kerr Institute Student and Intern Conservation Blog, where you can also read about the challenging process of creating a reconstruction of the Virgin and Child discussed above, using traditional artists’ materials and techniques: https://hamiltonkerrinstitute.wordpress.com/

All images in this post are the copyright of The Hamilton Kerr Institute, University of Cambridge

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RECOVERING AND RE-COVERING: Conservation of a fifteenth-century bookbinding

Books are something of an oddity in the context of a museum in that they are not only objects which we want to preserve for their historical significance but also machines which have a mechanical function to carry out every time a reader opens them. No one in his/her right mind would dream of cooking in a medieval pot or wearing a pair of eighteenth-century shoes – i.e. of using either object for its original function – but the medieval and eighteenth-century bindings in a library are expected to work to allow access to the texts they contain. Continued use, combined with the ageing of materials used in the construction of the bindings, eventually leads to boards becoming detached and sewing structures wearing to the point where they can break, so generations of bookbinders have repaired bindings as a large part of their work.
One of the incunabula (that is, books printed before 1500) in the Founder’s Library had been given a new spine in the late nineteenth century in order to reattach the front board. Unfortunately, the poor quality of the leather meant that the repair itself was deteriorating and the front board had become detached again. In addition, the previous repairer had used a large amount of hide glue on the spine of the book which prevented it from flexing. The result of this repair campaign was to give an early printed book a spine which would look much more appropriate on a nineteenth-century book. A large part of the interest of this binding was in what lay hidden beneath the previous repairs. As conservation work progressed, the book started to reveal elements of its making hidden for over a century.

The book as received, showing the original blind-tooled calfskin on the boards.

The book as received, showing the nineteeth-century leather on the spine.

The large amount of hide glue applied to the spine during the previous repair work prevented the book from opening properly. The image shows the maximum opening possible without breaking the spine!

The nineteenth-century paper paste-down on the inside of the front board appeared to be covering a much earlier sheet of parchment, which is just visible at the tail edge.

On close examination at the bench, it soon became apparent that the sewing structure might well be original and that endbands of braided alum-tawed skin, typical of Germanic bindings of this period, may well have survived under the newer leather on the spine. In addition, a narrow line of parchment was just visible, extending beyond the edge of the nineteenth-century paper paste-downs (the sheets of paper pasted to the inner surface of both boards). Depressions in the pastedowns also suggested that the original pattern of the cutting for the foredge corners of the boards (the free corners on the opening edge of the boards) was of the ‘tongue corner’ type rather than the mitred type suggested by the nineteenth-century repair patches. The ‘tidying up’ by the last repairer seemed to be obscuring a great deal of fascinating information.
After discussions with the curators of the collection, we decided that the need for repair provided a good opportunity to examine the structure of the book further and that the nineteenth-century material could be removed, saving annotations on the newer paper endleaves and the labels for future reference. Unfortunately, the nineteenth-century leather on the spine and at the corners of the boards was far too degraded to save and crumbled into powdery flakes during attempts to lift it. However, when the leather and hide glue on the spine had been removed, it was exciting to find that the original sewing structure and the original braided endbands had survived in a surprisingly good state of preservation, so much so that the whole structure could flex in an excellent opening arch as the original binder intended.

The spine cleaned of nineteenth-century leather and hide glue to reveal the intact sewing structure and braided endbands of a well-constructed early printed book.

Further investigation on the insides of both boards revealed that the original parchment board sheets were still in place and, further, that they were made from a recycled manuscript document which appears to have had at least six seals attached to it on parchment tabs in its original form – the slits for the tabs to pass through are clearly visible in the sheet on the back board (see the lower edge of the sheet in the image below).

Slits in the reused parchment on the inside of the back board suggest that the document originally had at least six seals attached with parchment tabs.

With the leaves of the book flexing from the spine-folds once again, it was also easy to see that the centre of each section had been reinforced by the binder with a folded strip of parchment to help prevent the paper leaves from tearing around the sewing holes. The parchment strips are made from manuscript waste too, although it is not yet clear whether they are from the same document as the board sheets.
The approach to repairing the book was to follow binding techniques of the fifteenth century rather than to re-apply inappropriate nineteenth-century methods. The front board was reattached and the attachment of the back board reinforced with linen braids, secured to the original raised bands with helical stitches of linen thread. The ends of the braids were left long so that they could be frayed out and threaded though the boards next to the original sewing supports to form a sturdy attachment. A slotted loose linen spine-liner was also added to prevent the new leather spine from being adhered directly to the backs of the sections and to form new inner joints in the repaired binding. The lining was carefully cut to fit around the endbands, which remain exposed as the original binder intended.

Linen braids and a loose linen spine-liner in place, ready for the reattachment of the front board.

New archival tanned calfskin was toned and pared to blend in with the original leather before being adhered with wheat-starch paste, again leaving the endbands exposed. The book was then put into a finishing press and strong cord was used to hold the leather tight to the spine and raised bands in the traditional manner during drying.

The re-backed book tied up with cord to dry.

The corners of the boards were re-covered with patches of the same leather inserted under the original covering material so that the tongue corners are visible once more. When the new leather was dry, the flanges of the linen spine-liner were adhered to the insides of the boards under the lifted edges of the manuscript waste board sheets, which were in turn pasted back into position.

Following conservation and repair work, this book is in safe condition to be consulted by researchers in the Founder’s Library. The opening is greatly improved and many original features of the binding have been revealed for the first time in over a century, allowing the book to give us many more clues as to its making and provenance.

The conserved book has a greatly improved opening.

The original recycled parchment manuscript sheets on the insides of the baords are clearly visible for readers.

Can you turn the heating up?

No. Well, maybe. It depends.

At the Fitzwilliam Museum, collections are kept in the best environment we can achieve, in order to prolong the lifespan of the objects and artworks; temperature is an aspect of museum management which not only is important for the comfort of visitors, but it also has a huge impact on the collections.

As the temperature remains low over the Winter months, we have to think carefully about how we heat the building.

Why might we pause before turning up the heating? Bear with this brief physics lesson, if you can:

Increased temperature can affect a range a materials, including adhesives, metals and resins. And, while it may not be visually obvious straight away, increasing temperature can increase the rate of deterioration of objects.

Temperature also has a direct impact on relative humidity (RH). RH is the amount of moisture in the air in relation to the temperature, and is given as a percentage. 100% RH means that the air cannot hold any more moisture – this is when you would see water dripping down the walls! The warmer the air, the more moisture it can hold; and if we were to turn up the heat in a room, the relative humidity would decrease causing the air to feel dry.

Organic materials, such as wood, contain water. If the RH of the air is less than the moisture content in the object, then water will start to travel from the object to the air – this is when cracks can (literally) start to appear.

Panel painting which has curved as the wood reacts to the level of moisture in the air

So, if we turn the heating up, we have to introduce moisture into the air using a humidifier to keep the RH at the same level. This will help prevent the objects drying out.

With older objects, there is often more evidence of the changing environments it has encountered, like this panel painting. The wooden panel has curved as a reaction to the humidity levels around it.

At The Fitzwilliam Museum, we have the added complication of working in a Grade I building. The Founders Building dates back to 1848, and there have been several additions since. We have air handling units in some of the more modern galleries, which can control temperature and humidity. But in the older galleries, we can only use heat to control the environment.

Environmental monitor measuring relative humidity and temperature

We have over 70 environmental monitors in the building, and they help us keep track of the environment in all the galleries and store rooms.

So, when we are asked if the heating can be turned up, we might say ‘yes’ but we have to do a bit of data analysis first.

Readings from an environmental monitor in Gallery I. It is showing the daily fluctuations in temperature and RH.

Welcome!

Welcome to the Fitzwilliam Museum Conservation and Collections Care Blog!

light-measuring

The Fitzwilliam Museum has studios for the conservation of antiquities, applied arts, manuscripts and printed books, and works of art on paper and a scientific laboratory to carry out analysis on the collection. The Museum’s paintings are conserved at The Hamilton Kerr Institute, which is also a department of the Museum.

Conservators at the Fitzwilliam Museum work alongside curators, researching and investigating the materials and technology of the objects. They assess and record condition and undertake conservation treatment where necessary. The other important part of conservation work is collections care. This includes all the actions taken to avoid damage and slow down deterioration of the objects by controlling the environment around them.