DOI Heft:
No. 3
DOI Artikel:Jędrzejewska, Hanna: The conservation of wall-paintings from Faras
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.17161#0101
6. The removal of last traces of wax from the surface
surface. The new background is laid about 5 mm bclow the original surface. The ensueing step
at the actual contour of the original is worked out rather steeply and unevenly to avoid the
impression of a regular band accentuating the purely accidental shapes of the fragments. This
step is carefully covered with the mortar used for background which may, or may not, be different
from mortars in interior repairs. The texture and colour of the background are perhaps the
most important factors in giving the ancient relic sonie of the necessary equilibrium. The texture
of the backgrounds is as a rule made grainy, such as a mortar would be. But their „neutral"
tone is a matter of endless discussions. Neutral tone means that there is no definite colour in the
preparation. But has it to be lighter, or darker, yellowish, greenish, reddish, or of a more brown
hue? And is it better to contrast slightly the area of the original, or just to dissolve it in a back-
ground of possibly similar colour, with the original always well marked by the difference of
Jevels rigidly observed for all repairs? These ąuestions have to be answered for each painting
separately. It is an individual matter very much depending on the particular artist-conservator.
11. Very important problems are connected with the finał structure of backgrounds, and
with the size and shape of the rigid supports directly fixed to the paintings. It has been decided,
for technical reasons, to reduce the structural supports to the necessary minimum of size, and
to make them of irregular shape approximately following the contours of the original fragment.
These plates can be afterwards inserted in well fitting openings in big screens suggesting in a well
studied manner the rectangular two-dimensional ąualities of a wali, with the rigid support and
the screen uniformly coyered with the same mortar.
87
surface. The new background is laid about 5 mm bclow the original surface. The ensueing step
at the actual contour of the original is worked out rather steeply and unevenly to avoid the
impression of a regular band accentuating the purely accidental shapes of the fragments. This
step is carefully covered with the mortar used for background which may, or may not, be different
from mortars in interior repairs. The texture and colour of the background are perhaps the
most important factors in giving the ancient relic sonie of the necessary equilibrium. The texture
of the backgrounds is as a rule made grainy, such as a mortar would be. But their „neutral"
tone is a matter of endless discussions. Neutral tone means that there is no definite colour in the
preparation. But has it to be lighter, or darker, yellowish, greenish, reddish, or of a more brown
hue? And is it better to contrast slightly the area of the original, or just to dissolve it in a back-
ground of possibly similar colour, with the original always well marked by the difference of
Jevels rigidly observed for all repairs? These ąuestions have to be answered for each painting
separately. It is an individual matter very much depending on the particular artist-conservator.
11. Very important problems are connected with the finał structure of backgrounds, and
with the size and shape of the rigid supports directly fixed to the paintings. It has been decided,
for technical reasons, to reduce the structural supports to the necessary minimum of size, and
to make them of irregular shape approximately following the contours of the original fragment.
These plates can be afterwards inserted in well fitting openings in big screens suggesting in a well
studied manner the rectangular two-dimensional ąualities of a wali, with the rigid support and
the screen uniformly coyered with the same mortar.
87