Before mending, complex tear in boy's shoulder seen from verso. Black material was likely used to attempt repair in the past. It had physical characteristics of a resin, but may have also been combined with overpaint applied to the recto.
Complex tear after reduction of adhesive-like black material.
Complex tear after mending. Strips of a thin Japanese paper were contoured to bridge the various tears. The Japanese paper was adhered with a thin application of Jade 403, diluted with deionized water and dried under blotters and weight.
Complex tear after mending, before in-painting
After Treatment, complex tear in boy's shoulder
Before Treatment, tear through boy's eye
Before Treatment, tear through boy's eye seen from the verso. Adhesive residue and outlines of varying degrees of oxidation indicate there had been a rectangular patch(es) applied as a previous repair attempt.
After mending, tear through boy's eye. A thin Japanese paper was used to bridge the tear. Two strips of water-torn paper with concentric dimensions were applied using Jade 403 diluted to a thin paste with deionized water.
After mending tear, seen from recto
After Treatment, tear through boy's eye
Before Treatment, vertical tear in Capt. Trent's hair
After mending, tear through Capt. Trent's hair. A thin Japanese paper was used to bridge the tear. Two strips of water-torn paper with concentric dimensions were applied using Jade 403 diluted to a thin paste with deionized water.
After mending tear, seen from recto.
After Treatment, tear in Capt. Trent's hair
Before Treatment, leather strap attached to strainer
After mending, leather strap attached to strainer. The leather was consolidated using a low concentration of Klucel-G ((hydroxypropyl cellulose). The break was butt-joined with a higher concentration of Klucel-G . Silk crepeline was attached with BEVA-371 film as a backing to reinforce the mend.
After Treatment, leather strap seen from verso.
Images presented in this gallery are courtesy of The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation