23.03.2013 Views

Series editors' preface - Wood Tools

Series editors' preface - Wood Tools

Series editors' preface - Wood Tools

SHOW MORE
SHOW LESS

Create successful ePaper yourself

Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.

(a)<br />

(b)<br />

Figure 16.23 Japanese inro<br />

(a) Before conservation: accretions of wax form a halo<br />

around raised decoration<br />

(b) After conservation: wax was removed with an<br />

aromatic hydrocarbon solvent<br />

Oriental lacquer objects in the west were<br />

often given a coat of a natural resin varnish to<br />

restore lustre to the surface or as part of a<br />

restoration treatment. In many cases, the subtlety<br />

of lacquer decoration is compromised by<br />

such coatings, for example loss of contrast<br />

between matte and gloss areas or variations in<br />

makie decoration (Figure 16.24). The difficulty<br />

in removing an aged, natural resin varnish from<br />

a light-damaged lacquer surface is that the<br />

materials which will most readily remove the<br />

natural resin varnish are also the most likely to<br />

blanch or damage the underlying lacquer. If<br />

the removal of varnish is deemed necessary, it<br />

should be undertaken with the least polar solvent<br />

or solvent blend possible. It has been<br />

observed that the more hydrogen bonding<br />

plays a role in the cleaning action of a solvent<br />

or solvent blend, the more potential there is to<br />

disrupt or damage the surface of the lacquer<br />

(Rivers, 2003).<br />

Conserving other materials II 765<br />

Figure 16.24 Detail of a lacquer panel (c.1640)<br />

incorporated into a French fall front secretaire<br />

(c.1790–1810) during conservation. Degraded varnish<br />

was removed from the lacquer panel with ethanol<br />

It is important that solvents do not penetrate<br />

the lacquer, via cracks in the surface, to the<br />

ground layers below. Gelled solutions do not<br />

sufficiently limit exposure of the lacquer surface<br />

and, as a general rule, should be avoided.<br />

In a few cases, where the underlying lacquer<br />

is in good condition, or where its surface has<br />

been so harshly treated in the past that the very<br />

water/solvent sensitive upper layers have been<br />

removed, it may be possible to remove an<br />

unwanted varnish using swabs moistened with<br />

solvents. In most cases, however, this treatment<br />

is unsuitable and a method that uses minimal<br />

solvent may be tested. A few drops of<br />

acetone, ethanol, or 80:20 ethanol and water,<br />

can be applied to a small piece of soft cotton<br />

cloth. The cloth may be wrapped around a fingertip<br />

and moved with very light pressure in a

Hooray! Your file is uploaded and ready to be published.

Saved successfully!

Ooh no, something went wrong!