Conservation around the Millennium (Hungarian National Museum, 2001)
Pages - 101
Fungi need slightly acidic soil (pH 4.5-7) and 20-25 °C mean degrees for development. They can be active between 0 °C and 30-40 °C. Aspergillus fumigatus is one of the most dangerous mould fungi because the condition it favours the most matches the 36-37 °C temperature of the human body.21 Recent literature describes a row of fungicide chemicals. Finds of organic origin (wood, grass, leather) of the so-called glacier mummy from the end of the stone age were disinfected in 2% borax and 2% boric acid diluted in distilled water.22 The chemical with the trade mark Diffusit S can be used effectively in a different proportion against dry-rot (Merulius lacrimans). Its active ingredients are: 52.5% boric acid and 32.5% borax diluted in 20% water.23 German restorer colleagues suggested the disinfectant called Dodigen 226, and we used it for the disinfection and primary cleaning of textile, wood and leather finds.24 This chemical is already available in Hungary as well under the name Barquat H.25 (Pictures 4a and b) RESTORATION OF A WOMAN'S SHOE FROM COFFIN NO. 73. The object is preserved in the Tragor Ignác Museum, Vác. Registry number: 073.2.1-2. Measurements: entire length 240 mm, entire height 90 mm (Picture 5) The shoe was restored for the exhibition titled Hungária Regia in the Palais des Beaux Arts in Brussels in 1999.26 Condition prior to restoration: mediocre. All elements were preserved, only some parts of the cloth and leather around the heel discoloured and stiffened, the heel part of the insole crumbled. The threads loosened after cleaning The 5. Lateral view of the shoe from coffin no. 73 metal spangles on the vamp were covered with green corrosion, which coloured the silk around them to a greyish green colour. We treated the pin that was corroded into the textile material of the upper strap in its place, since it could not be removed without damaging the fabric. The restoration processes: • Disinfection. • Removal of impurities originating from the coffin, the corpse and from use. • Conservation and fixing of the copper ornament in the centre of the vamp to the textile fabric. • Cleaning of the textile quarters, removal of stains, dismantling of the hemming ribbon, its restoration and sewing back to the original place. • Cleaning and conservation of the sole after the investigation of the leathers, the filling in of the insole and the leather covering the heel after cleaning, and their replacement into the shoe with glue and stitching. 101
