Műtárgyvédelem, 2005 (Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum)
Összefoglalók
When restoration work on the candlestick began, the upper part was quite damaged and incomplete. Three of its arms were totally absent, and there were smaller pieces missing from the garland and the overlaying leaves. There was a thick coat of airborne polar contamination on all surfaces but it was particularly marked between the flowers and leaves. Two of the arms showed evidence at the point of breakage that they had earlier been glued with shellac, but the museum’s inventory did not include the arms themselves. The upper part of the candlestick can be unscrewed; the copper screw threads were mildly corroded and in need of cleaning and conservation treatment. The first step in restoring the candlestick was to clean it using wet cleaning procedures. The polar contaminants were removed by using a 2% warm water solution of a fatty alcohol sulphate anionic surfactant, and the remains of the shellac by swelling with methylated spirit. Corroded metal surfaces were restored by treatment with complex chemical agents. The missing arms were formed in porcelain sections. Gypsum casts were made of the separate pieces, and the final shapes were moulded from kaolin in these casts. New leaves and flowers were freely designed by hand. After firing and glazing, the various parts were glued together with Araldite five-minute twin component epoxy resin. Missing or damaged leaves and petals were replaced with new ones made from porcelain shaped to the required form and a paste mixed from polyvinyl acetate-based water dispersion glue and DAS modelling clay. The completed surfaces were retouched with liquid Schminke acrylic paints. Gold outlines were repainted with Bronzi Liquidi solvent-based gold paints. 207
