Prékopa Ágnes (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 31. (Budapest, 2017)

Ildikó PANDUR: Restoration of Metalwork from the Esterházy Treasury in the Budapest Museum of Applied Arts: Past, Present and Future

11. Ivory fragments. Photo by Mária Szabómé Szilágyi, 2012

shell and ornamented with ivory figures42 currently under restoration, copper rings have been applied at some time as a simple way of preventing the ivory carvings from falling off. For the most recent restoration of the silver plate covering the scabbard of a Turkish sabre43 by Veronika Szilágyi and Gábor Juhász a previous replacement piece was found among the debris. Since it is an integral part of the history of the artwork, it was put back in place during the present restoration. (Fig. 10)

7. The artworks were representative pieces of a princely treasury, and are very diverse inform, material, and ornamentation; there are also many complex and composite works

To get an impression of the variety encompassed by the treasure, it is enough to read the headings of the deposit inventory: metalwork, weapons, costume, clocks, porcelain, gold ruby glass, jewellery, saddles, horse covers, and more.44 Many items incorporate precious stones (such as rock crystal and amethyst) and organic materials (such as ivory, ostrich feathers, nautilus shell and—for clocks and cases—wood and leather).

8. Restoration often demands the use of costly (precious metal, precious stones, etc.), difficult-to-obtain, exotic materials.

82