Flaking medieval paintings at Westminster Abbey

A bad situation, which has been apparent to clued-in visitors for some time (far too many patches holding loose paint layers in place):

Environmental conditions inside Westminster Abbey are now causing "serious concern", according to one of its own conservators, Marie Louise Sauerberg. The Coronation Chair, commissioned in 1296 and used for virtually every crowning since 1308, has suffered from serious flaking of its gilded surface. Humidity levels fluctuate considerably in the abbey, mainly because of central heating. Polychromed wood is particularly vulnerable to these changes, causing the paint to flake.

Although unpublicised at the time, three years ago the chair was treated in situ, with adhesive being used to stabilise the lifting gilding.

Serious damage has also been sustained by the ancient sedilia, or priests' stalls, which date from around 1307. The sedilia, on the south side of the high altar, are decorated with paintings and are among the abbey's greatest treasures. They also feature some of the earliest English paintings on panel. . .

The condition of the sedilia is now so fragile that if one were to pass one's hand over the surface, a considerable area of the surviving 700-year-old paint would simply fall off. Even though they are just beyond the reach of tourists' hands, tiny paint fragments occasionally fall to the floor.

The throne, too, is on view but beyond the reach of the public in the ambulatory.

Not as far removed as it should be, though.

The environmental damage is largely the result of heating in the abbey, which reduces relative humidity. This is now thought to vary from around 30% to 80% throughout the year, a very high range.

From the Art Newspaper.

Posted by David on November 26, 2007 8:24 PM