Behind the scenes at the National Museums Collection Centre

By Carenza Murray, Work Experience Student with Collections Services

Hello everyone!

I’ve been the work experience placement at the wonderful National Museums Collections Centre in Granton for the last surprisingly short five days. For four days I’ve been based in the Collections Centre but on Tuesday I was in the National Museum of Scotland itself. If you - yes, you! – haven’t been yet, then you should go: the Museum is amazing in size and structure, and magnificent in its collection content, as, including the reserve collections, they have over four million objects and counting, in case you were wondering.

Monday

After arriving at the National Museums Collections Centre on a rather cold and dreary morning, what struck me at first was the very friendly and warm welcome from the staff at the Collections Centre. I thought it would be full of people who were going to be depressed and stocked up on way too much caffeine, but no, there was a surprisingly happy atmosphere for a Monday morning and some genuinely nice people too!

I was given the tour of the Collections Centre buildings (only five currently contain collections, as some of the older buildings are being demolished to make way for a shiny new storage building) and I was startled by the sheer size of the site. I’m not exaggerating when I write that it’s huge. When I first walked into Building 14 (the first building in the tour of the site), I was overwhelmed by the vast size of it; the buildings were all like the TARDIS.  I was quite unresponsive throughout the rest of the tour because I was speechless!

From whale bones to frogs pickled in jars the Collections Centre has it all.

In the afternoon, I learned how to handle the artefacts with the care that they require. I found it amazing how close conservators get to objects. I was able to see these objects from a conservator’s point of view, so with that came an almost overwhelming sense of responsibility. After that I knew that my work experience week was never going to be ordinary.

1, 2, 3 Lift! A lesson in object handling, and packing practising on an office chair,
before getting close to real objects.

Tuesday

Tuesday entailed a different venue to explore: the Museum itself on Chambers Street.

I was given a tour of this site: mind-blowing isn’t it? It’s hard to take in the actual age of some of the objects: when I was shown the Early People section of the Museum it was very difficult to think that the objects on display are over thousands, if not millions, of years old.

From the terrific T-Rex to the amazing amethyst geode, the range of collections of the Museum are spectacular.

On Tuesday afternoon, I was taken to the Loans and Collections Development departments, where I learned how objects are loaned and transported to and from the Museum, such as the current Vikings! exhibition, which is mostly on loan from the Swedish History Museum in Stockholm. I was also shown the ADLIB database, which contains information on most of the objects in the collection and their whereabouts. I found this very intriguing, especially the amount of work the system actually requires. You need to enter information about each component part of an object individually, for example, a teapot and its lid have separate object records.

Wednesday

Half way through the week, Wednesday involved looking at artefact conservation and paper and textile conservation back at Collections Centre HQ.

In the morning with the artefact conservators, I looked at how to conserve objects and the various different methods which can be used. It was incredible how varied their work can be. One day they’ll be working on some taxidermy, the next day they could be working on some objects made entirely of glass. It also struck me how precise you have to be in this work: a mistake could mean that an irreplaceable object is damaged beyond repair.

The afternoon entailed learning about the conservation of Paper and Textiles. The fragility of these objects is unbelievable, how they survived centuries of different owners and conditions is something I can’t understand. I made a padded hanger (which I think I made rather clumsily). These help to conserve clothing. They stop any acid within the wooden hangers from damaging the textile, and also support the costume seams. I was able to use my hanger on a piece of clothing, (after three attempts with different outfits) we found it fitted into a beautiful pink dress covered in small flowers which had a great level of detail and accuracy.

Third time lucky; the padded hanger fits!

Thursday

Thursday’s tasks included some work in the Analytical Research labs and a look at the conservation of different works of Engineering.

I was very excited about Thursday morning as Analytical Research is in some ways similar to what I want to do when I’m older: forensic anthropology. It didn’t disappoint. With the Analytical Scientist, I looked at different ways to analyse objects to find out many different things. It was a great insight into the way we understand objects.

Engineering conservation was very interesting in the afternoon. I was shown around another section of storage in which there were contraptions of all kinds. It was great to see that many of the items in storage still actually function. Some of the objects come into the Collection Centre in pieces, and some of the time the engineers have to guess what they would have looked like, which requires a great deal of patience. They then rebuild the object, and to see the finished piece is amazing. It’s rare to get the chance to see behind the scenes at Granton, so keep an eye out for any opportunities that come up, like Doors Open Day last year.

Cars and carriages in the National Museums Collection Centre.

Friday

My fifth and final day at the National Museums Collections Centre included a look at ways that objects from the collections are photographed.

I saw the range of objects that photography has to work around and I can tell you now, it’s not a walk in the park! Glass particularly is difficult. The photographers have to work around so many different objects and take photographs with a great deal of care. They also have to work with many different camera angles, and work with a high level of accuracy. It was very intriguing, but I don’t have a very high level of patience so I found it quite trying to get the perfect angle for an object.

So that’s it for my round up of my week here at Granton. It was a great experience and an unmissable opportunity. It was good to work with such great people and I am so lucky to have gotten the chance to work here.

Thanks for reading!

Hopefully, this blog gets your ‘seal’ of approval!

(What? Was that too cheesy for you?)

 

The Comet and the Space Hoppers: a leaky solution

Mike Loftus, Assistant Aircraft & Technology Conservator at National Museum of Flight, East Fortune

Mike Loftus is responsible for conserving aircraft and other technology objects ranging from complete aircraft to small objects like medals from the collection at National Museums Scotland. Here he describes an unusual conservation solution for the Comet 4C airliner using a retro activity toy! See it on display at the National Museum of Flight, East Fortune.

In the conservation of large engineering objects we use many processes and materials,  many of which remain invisible to the viewer. Some of these processes and materials are vigorously tested in the field of conservation to ensure suitability, durability and reversibility and some will come from industry as engineering standards with decades of case studies and data outlining their suitability for application to objects.

Boy jumping from blast shelter in front of de Havilland Comet 4C, National Museum of Flight, East Fortune.

One such project that requires the application of conservation and industrial processes is the Comet 4C commercial airliner at National Museum of Flight, East Fortune. The main scope of the current work is the prevention of water ingress.

Windows on the Comet 4C at National Museum of Flight, East Fortune.

To facilitate this we are reconditioning the window seals, which requires the windows to be removed from the aircraft. This leaves us with the problem of how to block the holes to prevent the weather getting in whilst the windows are in the workshop.

Inserting Space Hoppers to the windows on the Comet 4C at National Museum of Flight, East Fortune.

Fortunately one of our volunteers, John Thomson, who is a former employee at Torness Power Station, had faced similar problems during his career in nuclear power generation. During the first major power shut down at the power plant in 1989 they had to devise a way of blocking pipe ends whilst work was carried out.

A tight squeeze – Space Hoppers in the Comet, National Museum of Flight, East Fortune

One of the engineers present suggested using one of his grandchildren’s Space Hoppers to plug the hole, denying the child leisure time fun but providing a perfect solution to the engineering problem. As you can see the solution is far from invisible but it is a most effective temporary solution.

Emergency exit window from the Comet undergoing conservation at National Museum of Flight, East Fortune

I will miss the pleasant orange glow mood lighting when they are eventually removed but I’m sure our conservation grade space hoppers will come in handy for future projects.

Space Hoppers on view outside the Comet 4C at National Museum of Flight, East Fortune.

 

Twists and turns: stabilising an artefact for the David Livingstone exhibition

By Jill Plitnikas, Artefact Conservator

What are these four conservators so busily repairing? A net for catching antelopes! This interesting object is part of the new temporary exhibition Dr Livingstone, I presume? currently on at National Museum of Scotland. The net was collected by Livingstone himself and is one of a number of objects in the exhibition which were sent back from Africa to what was then the Scottish Industrial Museum, now the National Museum of Scotland.

Working on the antelope net in the conservation laboratory.

The South African net is made from the bark of the baobab tree (probably Adansonia digitata). One of the most versatile trees in Africa, the baobab is a source of food, water, fuel and much more, including plant fibres used in the making of cordage. The bark has been processed to form 2-ply S-twist cords, which have been knotted in turn to create the net’s structure. The entire object is over 3.5m in length and 1m in width.

When the net was examined in the lab, it was discovered that many of the cords were completely or almost broken, a condition likely resulting from use.

One of the many damaged cords.

Two Textile Conservators and two Artefact Conservators then put their heads together to devise a method for repairing the damaged cords.

After testing out a few different materials and techniques, we decided upon using paper twists to replicate the cords.  The paper chosen to form the twists was a Japanese mulberry or kozo paper, which is made from the long inner bark fibres of the paper mulberry or kozo tree (Broussonetia papyrifera). Mulberry paper is a popular repair material in conservation as it has considerable strength because of its long fibres, is chemically stable and available in a variety of weights.

Strips of three different thicknesses were first cut with feathered edges to reproduce the varying cord diameters found in the net. The paper was then toned with watercolours to produce three different shades of brown.

Toning the Japanese mulberry paper strips with watercolours.

Once the shade and thickness of the paper was matched to the cord to be repaired, the conservator created the twist with her fingers, wound it around the damaged cord, and secured it in position with wheat starch paste.

Twisted paper strips ready for use.

Applying the wheat starch paste.

Securing the paper twist to the damaged cord.

After the repair of around fifty damaged cords, the net was finally stable enough to go on display in the Livingstone exhibition!

One of the mended cords.

Dr Livingstone, I presume? runs at National Museum of Scotland until 7 April 2013.

 

A welcome return to the Museum for Weituo

By Charles Stable, Conservator

The ceramic figure of Weituo is one of the most recognisable characters in the National Museum of Scotland. A protector figure in Chinese Buddhism, for 70 years he watched over the Museum from his position on the balcony.

In 2008, however, as work began to redevelop the Museum, Weituo was removed to our Collection Centre, where he underwent conservation treatment. Over 180 hours were spent examining, cleaning, repairing and documenting the terracotta figure.

Our main challenge was to understand the extent of the first restoration, undertaken by the Museum in 1937. Originally bought by a London art dealer, Weituo had suffered considerable damage in his journey from China to the UK, and the original restoration involved filling the legs with cement and iron dowels to support them, and making good the cracks in the ceramic body by filling and over-painting.

The base of the statue with the over-paint removed.

The over-paints were removed to reveal extensive filling and repair. The pedestal base of the figure was found to have been permanently dowelled to its wooden plinth as part of the repair. To remount the figure for display, the new plinth would have to be carefully designed and planned to include the wooden plinth and conceal it.

Weituo was finally re-installed in December, by a joint team comprising of our Museums’ Technicians Steven Anderson and Stuart Jack, and from Artefact Conservation myself, Diana de Bellaigue and Lisa Barter. The whole exercise was overseen by Exhibition Designer Charlotte Hirst. This is part of a series of large object installations currently taking place within the National Museum of Scotland.

The sculpture weighs 400kg in total, but separates into two halves at the waist. The figure was lifted into place using a two-ton aluminum gantry. As the object is heavy, and made from particularly weak and fragile ceramic, the lifting slings were fitted very carefully, and great care was taken during the actual lift.

Installing Weituo’s legs.

Lifting Weituo’s torso.

Lifting Weituo’s torso.

Moving Weituo’s torso into place.

Lowering Weituo’s torso into place.

The install was undertaken after our public opening time and completed in under two hours. Afterwards we celebrated with mince pies!

Celebrating with mince pies!

You can see Weituo in his new position on Level 5 of the National Museum of Scotland, outside the Looking East gallery. More information is available about Weituo on our website.

 

Uncovering 17th century tastes in interior design

By Diana de Bellaigue, Artefact Conservator

This autumn marks the exciting culmination of several years’ work on a multidisciplinary project to uncover the hidden story of a very rare early 17^th century stone overmantel. It shows the Classical Greek tale of the Race of Atalanta and Hippomenes. You can find it on display in the Traditions in Sculpture gallery in the National Museum of Scotland.

17th century stone overmantel showing the Classical Greek tale of the Race of Atalanta and Hippomenes.

When we first started the conservation of the piece several years ago, we spotted beneath the dirty brown surface a wealth of vibrant colour, including greens, reds, gold and silver.

Detail of the overmantel showing traces of colour.

Using traditional techniques of paint analysis and new technologies, we have been able to analyse how the piece might have looked when it was made and throughout the intervening years.

We took tiny paint samples to get an accurate idea of all the layers of colour lying beneath the blackened surface.

Cross sections of paint samples from the overmantel.

Above are pictures of just a few of the paint cross-sections – each about the size of an ant, mounted in resin and polished to be analysed using several techniques, including Scanning Electron Microscope and Fourier Transmission Infra Red.

We found gold and silver leaf glazed with bright washes to give the impression of rich brocades on the clothing; vivid, naturalistic azurite blue skies; copper green grass; pinkish carmine skin tones; and, rather startlingly, gold leaf on the hair and beards.

Colin Muir from Historic Scotland kindly created this laser scan of the piece so that we would have a totally accurate 3D image to work with for our colour recreation.

Laser scan of the overmantel.

We then approached the School of Computing at Edinburgh Napier University and Leah Ferrini, currently studying for a Digital Media degree, translated our findings so that we could peel back the layers and show digitally what can never again be seen in reality.

Overmantel showing the original colours and where the samples were taken from.

This version shows the colours we are sure are from the first colour scheme, and the areas the samples were taken from.

A best guess of the original colour scheme.

This is our best guess of the original colour scheme, based on the results of the analysis and our knowledge of the artist’s palette. The area left white was also brightly coloured but we decided it was too complex to include in the project so far.

Detail of plaster frieze from the Great Hall of Hardwick Hall. Photo courtesy of The National Trust: Perry Lithgow Partnership

Although we know the general colours are accurate, the image above, from a plaster frieze in the Great Hall of Hardwick Hall, shows the sort of detail we are probably missing, particularly in the grassy areas.

Watch this space for the next blog post about the project, as Napier students are going to continue the work to show the subsequent repaints and improve the accuracy of the digitised colours. We are really looking forward to being able to present this vivid reflection of changing fashions in British interior decoration over the past 500 years and are very grateful to Historic Scotland and Edinburgh Napier University for helping to make this happen.

You can find out more about the history of the overmantel here.

 

Fifty Shades of Grey: Cleaning and conservation of David Watson Stevenson’s plaster models

By Charles Stable, Artefact Conservator

One of the challenges museum conservators  have to face when cleaning historic objects is learning the difference between new dirt, historic dirt, degraded coatings and original surface finishes. All have an effect on the overall appearance of objects and, working with curators, conservators have to decide what needs to be cleaned, removed or kept to preserve the integrity of the object.

A collection of painted plaster models recently received by National Museums Scotland has presented just such a challenge to the Artefact Conservation department.

The National Museums have recently acquired a group of plaster models by Ratho born sculptor David Watson Stevenson (1842-1904). Stevenson is probably best known for his sculpture of William Wallace at the National Wallace Monument in Stirling.

The models have been brought into the conservation labs for condition assessment and treatment before they go on display in a temporary exhibition of new decorative art acquisitions entitled “New For You” in the National Museum of Scotland. They include two models of Robert Burns and a series of models of allegorical females, commissioned for a memorial in Oldham dedicated to John Platt, a Victorian industrialist.

Usually the public get to see objects when we have finished the conservation, however, in this exhibition we will be displaying the  pieces partially cleaned and repaired, to give visitors an insight into what is involved and how the objects will visually change once treatment is completed.

It is always exciting to get new acquisitions, and as a Conservator you get to see these objects at close hand. Sometimes all isn’t as it seems, and once you start working on a piece you start to uncover its secrets. In this case our investigations have led to the conclusion that some of the sculptures would have originally looked very different from how they do today. Using conservation cleaning techniques, we have been able to start restoring the original appearance of some of the sculptures.

The varnish layer on this plaster model of Robert Burns has aged and degraded, becoming a yellowy green. The varnish layer has been removed to reveal the original white scheme beneath. This is the model of the statue of Burns to be found in Bernard Street, Leith.

Left: Allegorical female being cleaned with dampened cotton swabs to remove surface dirt. Right: The model viewed from above shows the contrast between the clean and dirty surfaces.

We are also starting to understand why some of the sculptures look the way they do now. The allegorical figure on the left has been overpainted. Further investigation shows that the figure was originally painted using copper based metal powders to imitate a bronze finish, giving it an appearance similar to the figure on the right. We  now believe the metal powders on the figure on the left  have corroded and stained the overpaint, causing the darkening to the face and arm.

The figure  on the  left has been overpainted. Originally it would have had a bronze effect finish similar to the figure  on the right.

The plaster models have also had to get some first aid treatment. In the past, prominent areas such as toes, fingers and limbs have been damaged by accidental knocks and bumps. Some of the applied paint on the sculptures is now loose and falling off and this has to be stabilised before any cleaning can take place.

Stabilising the fragile painted surface on the bust of Robert Burns.

The models also contain iron and copper wire supports called armatures. Due to damp conditions these armatures corrode, the corrosion expands forcing the plaster to spall off the surface and the armatures become weaker. In the worst case this caused the head to detach from the  body  of the figure shown below.

Above: The headless allegorical figure before and during repair with losses to the neck gap filled. Note the corrosion on the head of the figure’s sceptre, which has caused plaster to detach.

You can see the conserved models on display in the Grand Gallery at National Museum of Scotland.

The Stevenson models on display in the Grand Gallery.

 

 

The conservation of railway posters for the See Scotland by Train exhibition

By Vicki Hanley, Paper Conservator

The railway posters currently on display in the See Scotland by Train exhibition received extensive conservation treatment to prepare them for display, increase their accessibility, and improve their long-term stability.

Prior to acquisition by National Museums Scotland, many of the posters had been backed onto a heavy weight paper and fabric with a thickly applied adhesive resembling wallpaper paste. This was probably done to make them more robust for handling and transportation.  They were then rolled tightly into plastic tubes for transport and storage.

The posters had been rolled tightly into plastic tubes.

Most challenging by far was the conservation of the Coronation, a poster which was acquired in three sections – two trains and one text panel – and measures over 3×2 metres in total.

Unfortunately, the backings and the rolled format made the sections very difficult to handle and flatten for display and we therefore began a lengthy process to undo this work.

Irene Kirkwood (Textile Conservator) and Vicki Hanley (Paper Conservator) are shown here removing the canvas backing off one of the train sections of the Coronation. The text panel is in the foreground with the backing still on.

Our Textile Conservation colleagues assisted us with treating these large objects. We had to gently tear and pull the canvas away, which required a great deal of muscle!

The paper backing was then removed with scalpels and localised moisture.  It was a very time consuming process.

This image shows Textile Conservators, Lynn McClean and Irene Kirkwood, and Paper Conservators, Lisa Cumming and Vicki Hanley laboriously removing the paper backing from a section of the Coronation poster.

Once the unwanted paper backing was removed from all three sections, the degree of damage, in the form of tears, creasing, dirt and overall fragility of the poster, was evident.

Damage to the reverse of the poster.

This image above shows all three sections of the Coronation in the conservation studio. Managing the space to accommodate the large size of the posters was a constant issue.

The lithographic inks were tested for solubility in water and then the posters were washed in filtered tap water to remove soluble dirt and discolouration, plus adhesive residues, from the backing paper. Each section of the Coronation was washed three or four times.

This image shows paper conservator Lisa Cumming and a colleague from National Galleries Scotland washing the Glasgow train section in our large wash bath.

This image is a detail of the text panel and shows brown, discoloured water droplets rising to the front of the paper.

Once all soluble discolouration was removed, each section of the poster was ‘lined’ using traditional paper conservation techniques and materials. A very lightweight Japanese paper and thin wheat starch paste adhesive, the consistency of single cream, was applied to the back of the poster. This offered strength and support for the object. Each newly lined section of poster was then stretched out onto wooden boards for flattening.

The image above shows the lining paper being lowered on to the back of a section of the poster.

Deciding on a method of display for such a large poster presented another challenge. Logistically, we were also confronted with hurdles, as we were unable to move such a large sized object in and out of our first floor labs at the National Museums Collection Centre in Granton. We therefore moved to Engineering Conservation in Building 14 and worked in the Spray Booth, which had recently been used for painting the luggage cart currently on display at the entrance to the exhibition.

Our Exhibition Technicians constructed a wooden lattice frame, which was dimensionally just greater than the three sections of the poster combined.

The wooden lattice frame.

We then adhered four layers of Japanese paper using a thick consistency wheat starch paste over the entire frame in strips and sheets.  Each layer was allowed to dry before proceeding with the next.  By the end we had constructed a smooth and well tensioned support to attach the Coronation poster.

Lining paper on the wooden lattice frame.

Hanging devices were attached onto the back of the frame. Each section of poster was then removed from its stretching board, positioned onto the wooden frame and adhered around the edges. The text panel was attached first, followed by the Glasgow and then Edinburgh train.

Attaching the Coronation poster to the frame.

Attaching the poster to the frame.

The exhibition technicians also constructed a custom-made frame for the object to travel in, and we hired specialist art movers to drive the Coronation from the Collection Centre to the museum. It was then manoeuvred by four people from the lorry, to the lift at Bristo Port, through the National Museum of Scotland, into the gallery, out of the frame and onto the wall, all before the museum opened to the public at 10am.

This image above shows the Coronation poster in its travel frame in Engineering Conservation, with Lisa Cumming and Vicki Hanley undertaking some finishing touches.

This image shows the Coronation being moved through the National Museum of Scotland.

The finished poster being fixed to the wall in the gallery.

You can see the poster in all its glory in See Scotland by Train, which runs until 24 June 2012 in Exhibition Gallery 2, Level 3, National Museum of Scotland. Find out more about the railway posters at our See Scotland by Train events.

 

Seeing the invisible

By Neil McLean, Photography Manager

Have you ever wondered who or what is lurking behind a faded photograph?

The photography section at National Museums Scotland is currently digitising our museums collection of pioneering calotypes from the two albums that belonged to Dr John Adamson, elder brother of Robert Adamson, of the famous early photographic partnership of David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson. These calotypes consist of a paper negative original (no longer present) which is then contact printed onto a fibre based paper to produce a positive image.

During the photography process I became aware that many original images had faded to either a blank sheet or a very faint outline. Although it is important to photograph the images as they now appear, the need to know what was originally photographed is compelling.

Discovery process

Because the chemical dyes in these faded originals are so washed out and the fibre paper is quite irregular, a process of shining light through the paper to enhance the images was not a suitable solution.

During experimentation I discovered that using a combination of Photoshop and Lightroom techniques, image enhancements were possible. I have discovered that this digital conservation process can be repeated for all relevant pictures in this collection. And so the discovery begins.

The results so far

Original faded negative image.

The same image (reverse positive) after digital conservation reveals a portrait of a woman.

Original negative image.

The same image (reverse positive) after digital conservation reveals a portrait of a woman.

Original positive image.

The image after digital conservation reveals a portrait of a man.

Original positive image.

The image after digital conservation reveals a table set for tea.

As you can see, the original tone is not always preserved. This is because, as part of the enhancement process, I am selecting localized colour tone and density and gaining detail and contrast. During this procedure tones will be sacrificed for definition gains. Also at this stage the image’s visual enhancement process is superseding the retention of colour. Further developments will include the retention of the original’s appearance.

Uncovering the unknown

So far in this development, people and objects have been discovered: the likelihood that the subject matter in these photographs has not been visible for over 100 years. We don’t yet know who these individuals are or where the objects were photographed. However, in addition to our collection, many other collections of photographs exist from the dawn of photography during the 1840s, the Hill and Adamson era, and the answers to these questions may lie there.

 

Delicate manoeuvres at East Fortune

By Hal Jacob, Conservation of Engineering and Mechanical Artefacts Intern
Since I started as an intern at National Museums Scotland, I have had many opportunities to be involved in a wide range of activities. These have varied from the conservation of surveying equipment used by Charles Piazzi Smyth at the Great Pyramid, to the fabrication and replication of components using various lathes and tools, as well as helping with installations at the National Museum of Scotland and attending several talks and tours.

One activity I had not expected to encounter was the two days I spent helping my colleagues rearrange aircraft in the Restoration Hangar at the National Museum of Flight at East Fortune. The hangar contains several aircraft which are undergoing restoration, along with a variety of other aircraft. The purpose of the move was to display the aircraft into a more chronological order, roughly by size and type, and to make better use of the space available.

Despite the weather being somewhat chilly, the sun was out and we soon warmed up once the lifting, pushing and pulling began. Of course, there is more to moving aircraft around than brute force, and besides, many of the aircraft were surprisingly light!

The Miles M18 parked with other aircraft outside the Restoration Hangar. Photo by Mike Lofthus.

The answer to moving these large historic objects without difficulty or damage occurring is having the ability to work and communicate well with everyone in the team. Each team member was assigned an area of an aircraft to push as well as watching closely that no part would collide with other aircraft or parts of the hangar. This was more complicated than one might think and, with larger aircraft like the de Havilland Sea Venom, required intricate forward and backward movement to fit it into its final position amongst other large aircraft. Manoeuvres like this required several people standing round the plane, with eyes fixed on wing tips and tail fins as well as each other to avoid any contact. At times we came close, but not once did two planes meet!

The General Aircraft Cygnet looking like a frightened cartoon cat. Photo by Mike Loftus.

The other thing to consider with aircraft is where on its body you push it. It is surprising how delicate they can be, despite what they are designed for: some have wings of painted canvas and fragile fittings, and you can’t apply any force to parts which control the aircraft’s flight path such as rudders, ailerons or flaps.

We parked all the aircraft to be repositioned outside, where the sun, grass and tarmac brought them back to life in a way that the hangar lights couldn’t do. The Sea Venom was taxied along one of the roadways with the museum’s ex-RAF tug, and it looked as if it was getting ready to take off and the brightly painted craft were all lined up and gleaming as if they had just landed for the day.

De Havilland Tiger Moth enjoying the winter sunshine. Photo by Mike Loftus.

After this short and rare outing for the aircraft, they were taken back in one by one, and positioned in their new space. By the end of the first day the hangar looked much more spacious, logically arranged, and far less cluttered. All that was left to do on the second day was to tidy up a few bits and pieces, replace the information boards and make a few minor adjustments.

Aircraft during manoeuvres in the Restoration Hangar. Photo by Mike Loftus.

The two days at the National Museum of Flight were great fun, and gave me valuable experience in moving a new type of object. It’s easy to forget that the principles of handling the small and often fragile objects many of us are familiar with, apply equally as much to any historic object whether it be a small and lightweight Air and Space Autogyro or an all-weather jet-engined interceptor aircraft.

 

Plastics, preservation and prosthetic limbs: three months in the department of Conservation & Analytical Research

By Dr Margaret J Smith, Science Conservation Intern

In June, I began a year’s Institute of Conservation (ICON) internship as a Science Conservation Intern, funded by Heritage Lottery Fund. The first three months were spent at the analytical research labs of the Conservation and Analytical Research Section (CAR) in Granton.  Having been a research chemist for 18 years prior to my internship, where I worked on a variety of multidisciplinary projects, the skills acquired during that time have helped me enormously in my new role.

In recent decades, museums have become aware that objects made from plastics (polymers) are subject to degradation from heat, light and moisture as well as physical damage. Sometimes termed modern materials, these objects can be anything from an acrylic sculpture to a PVC raincoat.  This has resulted in concern regarding their lifespan within the heritage sector and therefore significant research on their properties, degradation and long-term storage is a key issue for museums with significant object collections of modern materials.  While at National Museums Scotland, most of my time was spent working on these modern materials.

Projects

Examing, detailing and photographing the Plastics Handling Collection

This collection contains a huge variety of plastic objects, primarily manufactured in the 20th century, illustrating the development of plastics from the semi-synthetic to the synthetic. This allowed a database of these objects to be created, which will be used in the future to monitor degradation and inform curators of likely areas of concern specific to each polymer. All these objects had been photographed in 2000, although not described in detail, and visual comparisons were made using this photographic record to their current condition.

FT-IR Polymers Library

Modern materials such as polymers can be identified and their condition determined using Attenuated Total Reflectance/Fourier Transform Infrared (ATR/FT-IR). This technique creates a spectrum which provides a unique fingerprint of the polymer based on the vibrational energies of the molecules present in it. The technique allows objects (if small enough) or parts of larger objects to be studied non-destructively. The technique is very fast as no sample preparation is required and scans can take as little as one minute depending on the detail required.

CAR has an extensive collection of polymer samples obtained in the 1990s from companies such as BASF, BP and Courtaulds. Using these polymers I created libraries which can now be used in the future to identify unknown materials.

Working in the Conservation & Analytical Research lab.

Prosthetics

National Museums Scotland recently obtained a collection of prosthetic limbs which are fabricated from a variety of polymers and metals and cover a period of prosthetic research and development in Edinburgh from the 1960s to the present day. The driver for such prosthetic development was to fit children born with no or shortened limbs due to the anti-nausea drug thalidomide.

My part in this project has been to assess the current condition of a selection of prosthetic limbs and to determine the materials they have been constructed from. I have done this by using three analytical techniques: Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) (used for polymer identification and quality) and X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) (used to identify metals) to identify the materials and X-rays to determine the internal mechanisms present in the limbs. The subsequent analysis showed that the metal used in the mechanism was stainless steel. The prosthetics also frequently have fabric fastenings and coverings and in older samples leather is sometimes used.

Examining a prosthetic limb in the lab.

Jean Muir Collection

National Museums Scotland holds a variety of jewellery, hats and buttons by Jean Muir, which form part of a larger collection relating to this iconic designer. The jewellery in the main is made from plastic (polymers), some transparent and others pieces colored. In addition there were some silver pieces.

The conservation reporting and creation of new accessible storage solutions for these objects was carried out by Clare Berthommier, a visiting intern. As part of her task she wished to identify the materials these objects were made from, as this would help her to decide how they should be stored. Clare and I worked together on identifying the plastics, and we also found that some of the jewellery was made from silver. Some of the bracelets were flat discs, which were ideal for FT-IR scanning using the ATR attachment. Of the pieces analysed all were identified as poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) often known by names such as  Perspex or Plexiglass.

Visits and seminars

While at National Museums Scotland I accompanied a group of scientists and curators on a visit to the Clinical Research Imaging Centre at the Royal Infirmary Edinburgh. Work had been carried out there on the scanning of mummies from the collection.

I attended the Getty funded Research Network Meeting on Modern Materials in June. The purpose of the meeting was to create ideas for future projects in the understanding and preservation of modern materials. Delegates from a variety of countries attended this event.

On 28 July Dr Jim Tate and I visited Dr Andrea Hamilton at the Centre for Materials Science and Engineering at Edinburgh University to view and discuss the capabilities of the Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) they have within their department. Our application was to use AFM to monitor the degradation of the surface of plastics as an aid to understanding the degradation process in addition to other techniques.

I visited Hampton Court on 17 August with other ICON interns. The day kicked off with a talk by Miriam Langford, the Treatment Conservation Manager. In it she described the projects we would view, which included the conservation on a tapestry based on a design by Raphael, Queen Anne state bed and Queen Victoria’s dolls. The rest of the day was spent viewing the studios and as a scientist it was very enlightening to see conservators at work: it highlighted the dedication, skill and patience required by them.

On 23 August I visited the Liverpool museums. In the morning a tour of the conservation centre took place, where we viewed the conservation and restoration of model ships, of which the museum has many as a result of Liverpool’s famous shipping past. After lunch we were taken on a visit to the recently opened Museum of Liverpool, designed by the Danish architects 3XN. It has an eclectic mix of objects ranging from Liverpool’s sea trading past to Beatles memorabilia.

Reflection

The three months of my internship have been busy, varied and motivating. I feel privileged to have been given the opportunity to be part of the HLF Internship program. My time at National Museums Scotland has given me a real insight into the museum sector and how it operates. It has been a mix of lab work, research reading, visits, being part of meetings and planning future work. From day one I felt part of the team and I hope that I contributed to the CAR department. I anticipate that the relationships I have made here will continue throughout my internship and perhaps beyond.