Objects Conservation Services

preserving historic and cultural objects for the future

________________________________

conservingobjects@verizon.net * (716) 512-3201

Objects Conservation Services focuses on both preventative care as well as actual treatments. This includes :

Rehousing of collections. While in storage, objects usually require housing materials that will provide mechanical support to fragile areas. It is also important the the housings are easy to handle by researchers and curators.


This drawer held many Peruvian archaeological textile fragments. The fibers in the textiles have become weakened over time, making them difficult to handle because they are so fragile. We needed to create protective housings for the textiles that would provide adequate mechanical support, but not require too much space. We worked closely with the collections manager to devise a suitable rehousing plan.	Housings that were easy to construct and inexpensive to make were designed and created. Each textile was placed on a cotton support which was adhered to a thin, rigid support (archival board) which was placed inside of a Mylar envelope. The envelopes were sealed on three sides. The housings provide mechanical support to the textiles when they are picked up, and they allow the textiles to be easily handled and seen by researchers.	Conservation intern Cynthia Albertson helped in the design of the housings and the implementation of the rehousing project.


This sake cup stand (c18756), two sake cups, and another sake cup stand required protective packing for transport to another museum. The objects were covered with a delicate lacquer coating and decorated with gold paint.	Recesses were created in a foam block to hold and cushion the fragile objects (c18756, c18752, c18757, and c18755). Cotton straps were then tied under the block and over the objects to secure them in place. The block was placed inside of a custom-designed archival box.	The box was placed in a crate and cushioned with foam blocks to prevent the box from moving during transport.

Treatment of objects. Objects Conservation Services has treated a variety of objects from different time periods and cultures, such as ancient Greek ceramics encrusted with dirt, War of 1812 era copper-alloy belt buckles with disfiguring and unstable corrosion, a Ming dynasty staff with detached ceramic inlays, and a tangled and fragmented pre-Columbian Incan textile. All treatments are documented with written reports and photographs. The written reports contain information about the object and its condition. The photographs document the before- and after-treatment conditions of the object. Copies of all documentation are given to the client for future reference.

Conservation assessments. The condition of an object or a collection of objects may be performed for a variety of reasons. When objects are in storage, it is important to perform general surveys in order to ensure that the storage area is providing a stable and safe environment for the objects. When objects travel, conservation assessments are often performed before they leave the lending institution, at every museum that borrows the objects, and then when the objects return to the lending institution.