Condition/Conservation Report

May 22, 2001

 

 

Carved, Gilt Eagle (1800-1810)


OBJECT DESCRIPTION

 

This hand-carved & gilded eagle (“Eagle”), with a 5-foot wingspan is believed to have been created in the very early years of the 19th Century and was mounted to the exterior of a Federal building in Philadelphia, PA where it obviously endured years of exposure to natural elements.  In addition to its historic significance and craftsmanship, it stands as a symbol of the early Federal Period and the foundation of our nation’s freedom.  This is a Report of the Eagle’s pre-existing condition and 21st-Century conservation treatment by Todd H. Jorgensen (Professional Associate, AIC).

 



Dimensions

 

Height:            35”

Width:             60”

Depth:             40”

 

Materials/Substrates

 

            Primary Wood:           Pine

            Secondary Wood:       Base plate -- maple

 

Joinery

n      Wings carved in three sections.  Body appears to be carved out of one piece of wood.
     

n      Metal brackets & dowels (beneath cracked joint) attach wings to body
     
CONDITION REPORT

 

Structure

 

Frame/Carcass:          Good

 

Carving:                      Good

 

n      Visible evidence of weather erosion (at base & top of Eagle)

                                       
                                                 

n      Beak broken off at end (approximately 5/8” missing)
     

n      Both wings show signs of movement & shrinkage of substrate


n      Proper left wing – outer feather displays substrate void and outer 1st & 2nd feather tips missing

Gilding

n      Oil

n      Gold

n      Over-painted


n      Leaf loss

n      Water damage

n      Cracked gesso

n      Lifting gesso

n      Lifting & detached gold

 

Comments:

Entire back surface of Eagle bronze painted over original gold leaf, due to outdoor exposure & degradation of gilding.  Front side of Eagle ground & gilding delaminating due to wood shrinkage of substrate and exposure.


Insect Damage

 

            There appears to be no visible insect damage.

 

Finish

n      No apparent refinishing

n      Painted rock formation

n      Gilt

n      Bronzed over-painted on entire back
Finish Condition

 

Visible signs of impregnated dirt & grime on gold surface (front side).  Back side of Eagle over-painted with bronze paint as well as impregnated with dirt & grime.  Base rock formation over-painted with several different colors and is impregnated with dirt & grime.  Base over-painting displays flaking & delamination.  Proper left wing upper quadrant displays visible signs of bronze paint.
    

 

 

Previous Restoration

 

Wings display visual signs of modern wire nails used to repair & rejoined wing sections as well as metal brackets.  Series of boring holes are visible (evidence of previous mounting)   Visible modern fill above left eye.  Rock formation has been over-painted several times.  Synthetic glue resins visible on both wing joints.  Proper right wing front edge panel has been stripped to bare wood & re-gilded.  Tooling marks are visible.  There is visible previous repair under both wings (wooden blocks added).
     

Lower bill has been repaired as evidenced by visible synthetic glue & possibly bronze-painted and over-coated (strong orange color, perhaps shellac).  Proper right lower wing section displays modern wire nail fasteners.  Back of both wings – it appears small metal brackets have been added to lower sections.
     

 

n      Entire beak of Eagle bronze painted over gold

n      Lower base plate not original, planer marks are visible

n      Planer mill marks visible

n      Proper left foot -- 2 outer claws have been repaired & re-colored

n      Proper right foot – 2 inner claws have been repaired & re-colored

 

 

 

CONSERVATION REPORT
(treatment applied)

 

n      Case study & pre-treatment photo documentation

n      Micro-vacuumed entire object to remove superficial dust and dirt

n      Fabricated lazy Susan & mounted Eagle to Lazy Susan non-intrusive mounting system


n      Analyzed back surface to formulate surface cleaning solution

n      Surface cleaned back using 20% Ethanol & 80% mineral spirits with a dash of Vulpex soap,  cleared with mineral spirits
    



n      This solution removed all over painted bronze paint as well as dirt and grime and exposed original gilding

n      Fabricated saddle to place Eagle on back using wooden battens laminated with 4” thick dense foam rubber

n      Analyzed front surface to formulate surface cleaning solution

n      Surfaced cleaned front surface using an aqueous solution & cleared with distilled H2O
     



n      Consolidated loose & delaminated ground, bole and existing gold on front and back surfaces, using 251gram-strength hide glue
      

n      Surface cleaned rock formation using a mild solution of H2O and Vulpex soap to remove dirt & grime, cleared with distilled H2O

n      Consolidated degraded wooden substrate at rock formation base & base plate using 10% & 20% Butvar B-98 in Ethanol.  180ml of 10 % B-98 was injected after which 120ml of 20% B-98 injected,
      

This treatment restored significant structural integrity to these degraded areas.


n      Missing beak tip was reconstructed using pine 1” square x ¾” long, interfaced with animal hide glue & attached using Araldite 1253.  New beak addition carved to original form.

 

n      Blond shellac was applied to beak addition as well as ground & bole
 

n      An oil sizing was added & beak addition was gilded using 22KT gold.  Gilded area was distressed & aged using acrylics to achieve visual harmony.

n      Left proper wing feather tips (1st & 2nd) missing substrate was replaced using pine.  Outer new addition measures approx. 1” square; inner measures 2.5” square.  New feather additions were interfaced with animal hide glue, as well as feather tip ends attached with Araldite 1253, carvable wood epoxy & gap filler (made by Ciba-Geigy).  New additions were carved & shaped to existing surface.  A coat of blond shellac was added to new feather tip ends as well as ground & bole.
     

After an oil sizing was added, 22KT gold was applied to underside of feather tips.  Feather edge was filled with Araldite 1253 and gilded with same procedure as feather tips.
    

All new gilding on front side was distressed and glazed with acrylics, to match existing gold and achieve visual harmony.
  

The back side of feather tip additions was bronzed & distressed.
    

 

n      Entire object was coated with matte Soluvar.

n      Below is further post-treatment photo documentation of Eagle
     

     

n      Eagle was reinstalled using portable lift & secured using 5/16” x 3” lag bolts
     

     

n      Below is photo documentation of Eagle after re-mounting
     

     
 

Maintenance & environmental Issues

 

Most organic based objects such as this Eagle need to have special care taken to preserve them.  For instance, wood changes dimensional shape when the humidity rises above 70% or below 40%.  It is recommended to maintain a Relative Humidity of 50% (plus or minus 20%).  This range allows for minimal wood movement.  Also, direct sun light fades organic pigments such as textile dyes and paint pigments.  Just about any organic pigment is susceptible to Ultra-Violet Ray damage that the sun emits. The sun also emits heat rays that can be damaging to an object.  A clean environment is important.

 

Regarding maintenance for this object, it should never be vacuumed with conventional vacuum systems.  Instead use a soft feather duster such as Ostrich feathers.  Never use silicon base waxes or polishes on any object (i.e. Pledge, Pride)

 

Respectfully Submitted,

 

Todd H. Jorgensen

Professional Associate, AIC