About this special issue, an excerpt of Lara Artemis’s editorial:
“ (…) The inspiration for this issue of the journal came as I was browsing yet again the 1992 ‘Vellum and Parchment’ edition of The Paper Conservator. I realized that,—although still a fabulous source for understanding aspects of the nature of parchment—as time has moved on there is scope to update our views on and approaches to the preservation of this extraordinary material. This led to the Icon Editorial Panel agreeing that a 20th anniversary issue would provide a great opportunity to reflect on practices, review what may or may not have changed, and champion past and present conservation.
Over the past 20 years we have seen multifarious innovative parchment studies that have addressed a wide range of complex and challenging preservation needs. Conservation science is constantly exploring new and interesting theories and methodologies to inform approaches to the preservation of this ancient skin. We are always finding ways—from the visual to the forensic—to improve how we preserve parchment, for example protein analysis, the extrapolation of DNA, and exploring virtual (digital) reunification techniques. We have seen early understanding of macro- and microanalysis of parchment develop into a more sophisticated scientific assessment in the form of the Improved Damage Assessment of Parchment (IDAP) system. We have moved beyond Ronald Reed's classic Ancient Skins, Parchment and Leathers, and now rely on international conferences and electronic journals to guide us through the complicated preservation management needs of parchment. (…)”
And a few lines from Christina Rozeik’s editorial:
“Welcome to this vellum and parchment special issue of the Journal of the Institute of Conservation, which celebrates 20 years since an issue of The Paper Conservator on the same topic. As Lara says, this anniversary issue was conceived in recognition that there was ‘scope to update views and approaches to the preservation of such an extraordinary material’—and I hope that this aim has been amply fulfilled in the articles found here. (...)”
The authors and the articles titles of this special issue of the Journal of the Institute of Conservation are as follows:
- Catherine Rickman, Kate Edmondson, Emma Le Cornu, “The conservation of botanical illustrations on vellum: past, present and future”, pp. 117–136.
Abstract:
Botanical illustrations record the physical characteristics of plants. As well as providing a scientific record, the resulting paintings and drawings are often of great artistic merit. This article describes the conservation treatment and preparation of illustrations on vellum for exhibition and long-term storage, focusing on the collections of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Information is given on the history of the collections, their display at the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art during 2008–10 and their future preservation. Methods developed for the humidification, reshaping and mounting of paintings on vellum from the Kew collections are described. This article also reports on interviews with leading contemporary artists working on vellum. Aspects of their materials and working methods that relate to future conservation issues are recorded and future directions for collaboration between botanical artists and conservators are suggested.
- John Gillis, “The methodology used for dewatering the vellum from the Faddan More Psalter”, pp. 137–151.
Abstract:
The Faddan More Psalter is an early medieval vellum manuscript discovered in a peat bog in County Tipperary, Ireland in 2006. This paper focuses on a single aspect of its conservation: the dewatering of the saturated vellum text block, a process commonly used to remove excess water and debris from archaeological finds. The surviving vellum fragments had remained saturated for over a millennium in a very wet environment. No vellum of the same antiquity is known to have been conserved from these extreme conditions. As a result, new systems had to be developed and tested in order to find a successful approach to allow this unique manuscript to be conserved. The task was further complicated by the lack of comparable test material available.
- Andrea Pataki-Hundt, “Conservation treatment and stabilization of the ninth-century Stuttgart Psalter”, pp. 152–164.
Abstract:
This article describes conservation of the ninth-century Stuttgart Psalter, Württembergische Landesbibliothek, which contains over 300 illuminations on parchment. Some of the illuminations were consolidated with a special brush and sturgeon glue. The spine of the manuscript was released from synthetic glue with Laponite. Two types of repair tissue were used, both of them protein-based, handmade and reproducible in terms of thickness and components. Some losses were filled with handmade goldbeater's skin. Losses due to corrosion of the copper green pigment occur throughout the manuscript; these parts were stabilized with reconstituted parchment with a thickness of 0.03mm (1.4g·m−2). This represents a refinement of existing techniques to create a much thinner sheet than is typically used. Because the hide powder had changed in quality over the years, the preparation procedure needed to be adapted. For highly valuable manuscripts with copper green corrosion, this lightweight reconstituted parchment provides an alternative to traditional repair materials.
- Alexis Hagadorn, “Parchment making in eighteenth-century France: historical practices and the written record”, pp. 165–188.
Abstract:
Documentation of industrial arts within dictionaries, encyclopaedias and treatises has recorded parchment-making practices observed in eighteenth-century France. If understood within the context in which they were produced, the accounts in the treatises of Lalande and the Encyclopédie of Diderot and d'Alembert have the potential to contribute substantially to knowledge of historical practice. Significant information may also be found in the Dictionnaire universel de commerce of Savary des Brûlons and the treatise of Dessables. Together, these texts provide a clear description of parchment-making techniques at a time when trade practices were standardized but had not yet been modernized through industrialization. Comparative examination of the instructions for each stage of production offers a detailed account of how practitioners may have carried out these activities. Such investigation is particularly informative when these stages are also considered within the continuum of ancient, medieval and industrial era trends, and with reference to surviving historic examples in modern collections.
- Zoë Reid, Benjamin van de Wetering, “Conservation of the sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Chancery pleadings at the National Archives of Ireland”, pp. 189–200.
Abstract:
The Chancery pleadings are the largest single series of parchment records to have survived the fire in the Public Record office in 1922 during the Irish civil war. To date, 5265 fire-damaged administrative and legal parchment documents dating from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries have been part of a long-term conservation programme at the National Archives of Ireland. The conservation work involves removing the surface dirt, humidification of the skins, reshaping and repairing damage. The challenge of reshaping and flattening the damaged skins was met with a creative adaptation of the traditional parchment-maker's frame and the conservation clip and pin method. The humidified document is attached to cushioned spring clips that have Velcro straps, locking to the strip of Velcro around the edge of a wooden stretcher or board.
- Penelope Banou, Angeliki Stassinou, “Approaches to the conservation of patriarchal sigillia on parchment from the General State Archives of Greece”, pp. 201–218.
Abstract:
This article explores issues concerning the conservation of the post-Byzantine Patriarchal sigillia (deeds on parchment) in the collections of the General State Archives of Greece. These are documents of considerable size, often with an elaborate tongue-like projection and a pedant lead seal, typically folded to create a small package. Various materials are involved in their structure, which affects their condition. Folding practices have resulted in severe creasing and planar distortions, while the hanging system and the pendant seal often cause serious mechanical damage. The component parts could not be separated during conservation procedures, influencing decisions about treatment and intervention. Opening the substrate flat without altering or destroying original features, or affecting the materials involved, is a challenging task. Storage and hinging methods were developed to provide support without loss of original features.
- Kerstin Forstmeyer, “Parchment leafcasting revisited”, pp. 219–229.
Abstract:
In 1992 a group working with Jan Wouters developed a method to fill lacunae on badly damaged parchments, using a process similar to that used for paper. On a vacuum table a suspension of originally animal collagen fibres creates a layer of a material known as ‘reconstituted parchment’. This article summarizes experience of the technique gleaned from 20 years' practice in a workshop specializing in parchment restoration. Particular emphasis is placed on the fabrication of this fibre suspension: several modifications are presented, and its application to a variety damage types is described. The classic technique of wet-casting on to the object as well as the application of prefabricated ‘reconstituted parchment’ with various adhesives is discussed, as is dyeing of the infill.
