Annual Report 2010 - Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden

Johann Mock’s drawing “The Granting of the Order
of the Garter to Elector Johann Georg iV of saxony in
the Hall of Giants in 1693” following its restoration
Museum für Sächsische Volkskunst mit
puppentheatersammlung
In connection with the exhibition “The Art
of the Enlightenment“ at the National
Museum of China in Beijing in 2011,
several unusual objects were restored:
• The Oehme Theatre
A model theatre was formerly owned by
the family of a Zittau town councillor
named Oehme. It was made in about
1800 as a model of a large theatre stage
complete with all stage machinery
(changes of scene, trapdoors, adjustable
lighting) and was converted into a domestic
puppet theatre in about 1850. The particular
challenge with regard to its restoration
was that the theatre had originally
been built without a single nail or screw
and could be completely disassembled. It
was decided to document later alterations
but not to reverse them.
• Transparency scroll showing “The Corpus
Christi procession in Rome” (Saxony, 2nd
quarter to middle of the 19th century)
This scroll, which is more than 11 m long
(and was originally even longer), was
wound out before the eyes of the spectators
to musical accompaniment whilst
being illuminated from behind. Small
perforations in the screen had the effect
of highlighting the ornate garments of
the church dignitaries. The difficulty in
The Oehme Theatre presents a challenge
to the restorers: it was originally built
without a single nail
restoring this object, which is now wound
around large drums, was its size. Furthermore,
in some parts large areas of the
paint had become detached. Because the
image has to be illuminated from behind,
it was not possible to apply any support
materials on the reverse.
Münzkabinett
• Russian rulers’ medals from the 18th
century
In connection with scientific investigations
regarding the collections of the
Münzkabinett, attention was given to the
Russian rulers’ medals dating from the
18th century (Tsar Peter I to Tsarina Catherine
II). It was found that 21 of the 161
medals belonging to this collection were
in urgent need of restoration and conservation
work. All except one of these items
are embossed medals made of silver, copper
or tin. One object was a cast medal
made of copper plated tin. The silver surfaces,
some of which were severely tarnished
with black areas, had to be cleaned
and then conserved using a transparent
coating of varnish in order to restore their
legibility. In the case of the medals embossed
in copper, it was necessary not
only to remove corrosion products, but
also to eliminate old conservation layers
and conserve them again using microcrystalline
wax. The removal of a thick
a russian ruler’s medal made of silver,
18th-century: above: before restoration;
below: after cleaning and conservation
layer of image­obscuring white wax from
the only cast medal was also followed by
conservation using micro­crystalline wax.
The tin medals were also treated in the
same way after being cleaned.
Rüstkammer
• Set of hunting weapons mounted with
emeralds formerly owned by Johann
Georg I
One of the remarkable objects held in the
Rüstkammer is the emerald­mounted set
of ceremonial weapons dating from 1608.
Elector Christian II of Saxony commissioned
it from the master craftsman and
court goldsmith Gabriel Gipfel. He presented
it as a Christmas gift to his brother
Duke Johann Georg I that same year. The
set consists of a belt, hunting knife with
sheath, eviscerating knife with sheath and
various instruments.
The set also includes a dog’s collar, hunting
bag, powder flask and hunting horn
with strap. All the straps are decorated
with ornamental floral mountings made
of gilded silver, along with mounted
emeralds. Additional highlights are the
enamelled metal appliqués on the decorative
plates on the objects. The condition
of the textile coating, which dates from
the mid­20th century and has been damaged
through exposure to light, made it
necessary to conduct restoration work on
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