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Technology and Restoration

  • Line Bregnhøi, arkivet.thorvaldsensmuseum.dk, 1998

  • This is a re-publication of the article:

    Line Bregnhøi: ‘Technology and Restoration’, in: Meddelelser fra Thorvaldsens Museum (Communications from the Thorvaldsens Museum) p. 1998, p. 111-118.

    For a presentation of the article in its original appearance in Danish, please see this facsimile scan.

ENGLISH SUMMARY

Technology and Restoration

The National Museum has on several occasions examined the decorated ceilings in Thorvaldsens Museum. The knowledge that has been gathered is compared in this article with what was written earlier on techniques applied to the Museum’s ceilings and the restorations carried out on them. J. F. Holm, who was Bindesbøll’s resident architect while the Museum was being built, wrote a book in 1850 containing descriptions of the decoration techniques employed. In the case of the ceilings, he describes the use of the fresco technique that was being rediscovered in Europe at that time. The examinations of so far three ceilings, however, show a widespread use of secco painting. Two specimen ceilings have been restored, which has entailed dry-cleaning, fixing a small number sections and retouching.

Last updated 11.05.2017