This needlework shield is from St Mary Magdalene Church in Lincoln. It is one of two shields that were tied around the front of two candlesticks in the church. The church was restored in 1882 by G.F. Bodley, a famous English architect known for the Gothic Revival style. The shield is handmade and dates from the late 19th century.
Condition Before Treatment
The shield had been tied around the base of a candlestick for many years and had a significant amount of candle wax covering its surface. This does not negatively affect the stability of the object and its materials however it obscured the aesthetic value of the decorative item.
The cream silk fabric had become very fragile and worn away in some areas. Some of the gold threads had also become detached.
Treatment
1. Cleaning
Although the wax was not harming the object, this was removed as it was obscuring the aesthetic of the decorative piece. The larger pieces were carefully removed using a scalpel, and the rest melted off using a heated spatula. Acid-free paper and tissue were held between the object and a heated spatula to absorb the wax. Removing this greatly improved the objects appearance and revealed the design of the jacquard silk.
A cosmetic sponge was used to remove surface dirt from the shield.
2. Consolidation
Consolidation of the fragile textile, loose gold threads and trimmings was important to stabilise the object for display in the church again.
Due to the nature of how the shield was created, the textile could not be stitched as there was a board below. This meant that adhesive would have to be used. When consolidating the main silk fabric to the board, Beva® Film was cut to size and slid between the textile and board. A heated spatula could then be used to re-activate the adhesive to secure the textile.
A blend of Lascaux adhesive was mixed to re-align the gold threads. Small dots of this were dabbed into place under a microscope and tweezers used to align the threads into place.
The loose trimming on the sides was also consolidated to the boards using Beva film.To secure the area of damage on the left side, Nylon netting was used. This was dyed to match the colour, cut to size, and placed around the damage. This netting will help protect the damage on the trimming from worsening.
3. Mounting/Display
A custom mount was created to reflect the candlestick that the object was displayed on in the church.
Reflection By The Conservator
To be updated…
This object was treated by Rhianne, click on her profile to learn more about her.