Showing papers in "Journal of The American Institute for Conservation in 1996"
TL;DR: Since the mid-19th century, various pest eradication techniques have been employed on the anthropology collections at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution as mentioned in this paper, and these techniques are reviewed, and pesticide and fumigant use by early collectors and later collections management staff is documented.
Abstract: Since the mid-19th century, various pest eradication techniques have been employed on the anthropology collections at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution. These techniques are reviewed, and pesticide and fumigant use by early collectors and later collections management staff is documented. Also chronicled are the ways in which the choice of chemicals has changed over the years and the decisions that led to those changes. The effects of pest eradication techniques on the collections are discussed, and the author's findings are offered as the basis for further research.
63 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the effects of pigments on the amino acid composition data of hydrolyzed gelatin were obtained by gas chromatographic analysis of the ethyl chloroformate derivatives of amino acids.
Abstract: Proteinaceous binding media present in paintings can be identified by gas chromatographic analysis of the ethyl chloroformate derivatives of amino acids. The effects of pigments on the amino acid composition data of hydrolyzed gelatin that were obtained by this method were studied. The method was also used to analyze glue and egg tempera paint films that were exposed to heat and light in order to accelerate the aging of the paints. Pigments and accelerated aging were found to affect the concentrations of all amino acids, although the concentrations of alkyl and imino-substituted amino acids were affected to a much smaller degree than others. Samples of grounds and paints that were removed from a number of paintings and painted objects were analyzed by this method. The proteins present in the samples were identified from the amino acid molar percentages by correlation to published amino acid composition data.
47 citations
TL;DR: A separate but concurrent debate among philosophers, art critics, and literary critics was sparked by publication of the Intentional Fallacy, a scholarly article discrediting appeals to the intentions of artists and authors in art and literary criticism as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: A formal claim was made in the mid- 20th century that the goal of art conservation is to present the artwork as the artist intended it to be seen. Dispute over this claim among conservators and art historians involved differences of perspective on the relative roles of science and art history in the interpretation of artist's intent. A separate but concurrent debate among philosophers, art critics, and literary critics was sparked by publication of “The Intentional Fallacy,” a scholarly article discrediting appeals to the intentions of artists and authors in art and literary criticism. In this separate debate, difficulty in the evaluation and application of artist's intent was traced to ambiguity of the term “intent.” The author discusses 11 variations of its meaning and puts the issues surrounding artist's intent together in the contexts of art conservation. He also presents more recent viewpoints in the social sciences that associate issues of artist's intent with the role of the artist in the c...
45 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a new procedure for amino acid derivatization can be carried out in less than 20 minutes using a HP-INNOWAX capillary column, which involves the formation of N(O,S)-ethoxycarbonyl ethyl esters of amino acids using ethyl chloroformate.
Abstract: Gas chromatography has long been used as a means of identifying proteins in acid hydrolysates of paints and adhesives on the basis of their amino acid composition. Existing procedures for amino acid derivatization can, however, take up to 4 hours per analysis, whereas a new procedure employed at the Getty Conservation Institute can be carried out in less than 20 minutes. This procedure involves the formation of N(O,S)-ethoxycarbonyl ethyl esters of amino acids using ethyl chloroformate and then a separation on an HP-INNOWAX capillary column. This procedure was employed to analyze samples from the binding media library at the Getty Conservation Institute, and amino acid compositions were tabulated for various proteins that could be used for identification purposes.
41 citations
34 citations
29 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the Museums housing collections from indigenous peoples are changing their role and direction vis-a-vis the communities that originated their collections, which mean new ways of working in museu...
Abstract: Museums housing collections from indigenous peoples are changing their role and direction vis-a-vis the communities that originated their collections. Such changes mean new ways of working in museu...
26 citations
TL;DR: A variety of professional approaches to the treatment of human skeletal materials and the need for interdisciplinary cooperation among the professions that study and care for these materials are addressed.
Abstract: The ethical treatment of corporeal materials is confounded by the dual cultural and scientific values ascribed to human bone. The cultural concerns for the sacred significance of human remains often come into direct conflict with scientific investigation. The authors have been involved in a number of difficult situations between the professional communities who have responsibility for the scientific investigation of human remains and the lay communities who have been concerned for the sacred and spiritual aspects of these materials. This paper addresses a variety of professional approaches to the treatment of human skeletal materials and the need for interdisciplinary cooperation among the professions that study and care for these materials. It also addresses the need for AIC to recognize human remains as a discrete material deserving of considerations that are distinct from any other materials we treat as conservators.
21 citations
TL;DR: Air-coupled ultrasound (ACU) has been used to detect splits, checks, delaminations, cleavage, and voids in various materials such as wood and wood products as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Air-coupled ultrasound, a noncontact, nondestructive testing technique, has detected splits, checks, delaminations, cleavage, and voids in various materials. The system has inspected highly anisotropic and inhomogeneous materials such as wood and wood products, with surfaces layers of gesso, gesso and linen, paper, and wood veneer. Two paintings were tested; one was an oak-cradled panel painting and the other was illustration board mounted on hardboard. The air-coupled ultrasound technique yielded information additional to that provided by visual examination, xeroradiography, and infrared thermography.
19 citations
TL;DR: A case study of wax coating removal from a Benin copper alloy casting in the collection of the National Museum of African Art is presented in this article, where a brief review of possible reversal treatments used in th...
Abstract: A case study of wax coating removal from a Benin copper alloy casting in the collection of the National Museum of African Art is presented. A brief review of possible reversal treatments used in th...
18 citations
TL;DR: A specific tarnishing pattern was first observed in 1992 in a large collection of daguerreotypes viewed under short-wave ultraviolet illumination as mentioned in this paper, a straightforward examination and documentation technique available to conservators.
Abstract: A specific tarnishing pattern was first observed in 1992 in a large collection of daguerreotypes viewed under short-wave ultraviolet illumination. While daguerreotypes have been closely inspected under visible light, there appears to be no report of the use of short-wave ultraviolet illumination, a straightforward examination and documentation technique available to conservators. The scope of this investigation includes preliminary analysis, characterization of the tarnish, and a study of its rate of occurrence on a group of 110 daguerreotype plates. Two methods of instrumental surface analysis were used in this study: scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared analysis. These useful, nondestructive analytical methods are available to the conservator for examination and documentation and provide both inorganic and organic data. The findings indicate that the presence of this fluorescing tarnish may provide evidence of specific past treatments applied to daguerreotype plates. The f...
TL;DR: The function of an artist's fixative grew from a simple mechanical consolidant of powdery pigment applied by the artist to an all-purpose prophylactic coating applied in the artist's workshop.
Abstract: Over the past century, the function of an artist's fixative grew from a simple mechanical consolidant of powdery pigment applied by the artist to an all-purpose prophylactic coating applied in the ...
TL;DR: The immediate and long-term effects of aqueously light bleaching both unsized and gelatin-sized cotton cellulose papers in either calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2 or magnesium bicarbonate, Mg(HCO3)2, solutions were investigated.
Abstract: The immediate and long-term effects of aqueously light bleaching both unsized and gelatin-sized cotton cellulose papers in either calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2, or magnesium bicarbonate, Mg(HCO3)2, solutions were investigated. After samples were treated by washing, bleaching, or control bathing in the dark, one-half of each was artificially aged, and the condition of all samples was assessed. Appearance was analyzed by reflectance spectrometry, tensile behavior was observed using stress-strain measurements, and pH and gelatin content in the papers were measured with modified TAPPI standard measurement procedures. The results showed that exposure to light per se during the bleaching process did not adversely affect the properties of the papers. It appeared that aqueous light bleaching of the unsized paper was equally effective in either solution. The visible changes in appearance, as well as alterations in other properties of the gelatin-sized paper, were influenced by the partial removal of sizing up...
TL;DR: A 1751 French boiserie mirror, which retained approximately 30% of its original gilding, was treated at the J. Paul Getty Museum in 1994 as mentioned in this paper, which led to the use of new materials for a barrier coat and compensation of the losses in the gildings, including acrylic emulsion medium, mica pigments and gold leaf.
Abstract: A 1751 French boiserie mirror, which retained approximately 30% of its original gilding, was treated at the J. Paul Getty Museum. In the initial phase of the treatment, the mirror frame was thoroughly analyzed, its condition was documented, and testing of possible cleaning and compensation methods was begun. Ultimately, the conservators were not pleased with the results of that work, which was presented in a paper at the AIC Annual Meeting in 1994. Re-evaluation of the treatment led to the use of new materials for a barrier coat and for compensation of the losses in the gilding, including acrylic emulsion medium, mica pigments, and gold leaf. In creating the alternative system, the conservators and curators aimed to maintain the original goals of the project, including the proper interpretation and display of the mirror in the galleries as well as preservation of the physical integrity of the object. Methods for using nontraditional materials in a manner complementary to the original materials wer...
TL;DR: In this article, the conservation of severely damaged and unusable Polyrama Panoptique slides is discussed and strategies, techniques, and materials related to the treatment of slides are reviewed.
Abstract: Princeton University Library's Graphic Arts Collection has a large collection of optical amusement toys. Among these is the Polyrarna Panoptique collection. The collection consists of 24 paper viewing slides and a show box in which the slides are viewed. The slides use reflected and transmitted light to create an illusion of day and night and changing scenery before the viewer's eyes. This paper discusses the conservation of severely damaged and unusable Polyrama Panoptique slides. Strategies, techniques, and materials related to the treatment of slides are reviewed. Two slides whose conditions were representative of the condition of the collection were chosen for the initial phase of conservation. The procedures developed in treating the slides will be applied in large measure to the overall conservation of the collection.