Conservation of the organic materials for the loan China:
Journey to the East
Before objects can be sent on loan they need
to be assessed by conservators to ensure that they are in a
suitably stable condition to travel. Sometimes objects require
treatment to ensure they can be moved and handled safely.
The work required for preparing the
organic materials included in this loan was estimated at 300 hours
and has involved four conservators from the organic artefacts
section.
Amongst the objects assessed for the
loan was a collection of carved, red, Chinese lacquer.
Making carved lacquer involves a lengthy
process of building up many layers of thinly applied
urushi – a tree resin native to South East Asia. These are
then carved to create the three-dimensional surfaces.
During conservation the objects have been carefully
cleaned, and weaknesses in the structures and any lifting
lacquer layers have been secured.