ARCE

Conservators posing next to mosaic during conservation

Description:
Conservators posing next to mosaic during conservation
Photographer:
Image captured by Robert Vincent
Date Created:
2002
Collection:
Greco-Roman Museum Mosaic Conservation
Series:
Conservation work in progress
Subseries:
Berenike Mosaic
Location:
Alexandria, Egypt, Al Iskandarīyah, Tell Timai, Thmuis, and Al Mansurah
Time Period:
Hellenistic Period and Ptolemaic Period
Topic:
Art, Greco-Roman, Queens, Royalty, Military uniforms in art, Borders, Ornamental (Decorative arts), Maritime, Mosaics, Tesserae, Stonework, Portraits, and Ptolemy III Euergetes I Berenice, Queen, consort of Ptolemy III, King of Egypt
Genre:
color photographs, personnel, and work site
Conservation Note:
The first step was to carefully wash the surfaces with distilled water. After the initial washing, each mosaic was photographed for documentation and then traced on mylar sheets, recording the existing tesserae as well as the areas where they were missing (lacunae). The Berenike mosaic required more attention for resetting each mosaic in new inert beddings. It had been covered with two layers of facing cloth. Resin was removed using brushes, cotton balls, and dental picks. Dust and calcareous sediments had amalgamated with the resin, resulting in very tough crusts throughout the panel. These crusts were removed mechanically, using a vibrating engraver, hammer, chisels, dental pics, and a micro-sandblasting machine operated at low pressure. Two layers of cloth were glued to the mosaic surfaces with vinyl joiner glue. When the cloth dried, the panel was turned over to expose the back of the old cement bedding. Incisions were made in a checkerboard pattern in the cement, which was then extracted square by square with a hammer and chisel. Then the new support bed was prepared with boards made of aerolam. The boards were spread with a layer of stone grit to provide an adhesion surface for the mosaic pieces. The mosaic, still held together by the cloth, was then relaid over the new bed onto a new mortar composed of water, acrylic, sand, stone powder and hydraulic lime. Two different mortar mixtures were used for the Berenike, the first with the addition of glass powder. Foam was incorporated into the first mortar in order to reduce the weight of the panel because out of the three mosaics, it is the only one that hangs on the wall. After the mortar had set ( an interval of several hours), the cloth was removed from the mosaic's surface and a preliminary removal of the glue adhering to the tesserae was undertaken. After the mortar had dried completely, the surfaces were brushed, washed, and gently sandblasted to remove all traces of glue (Final Presentation Report).
Creative Commons License:
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/
Local ID:
arce_ca_mmc_images_0217.tif
Project History:
Within the walls of the Greco-Roman Museum, Alexandria, Egypt are three intricate mosaics of very fine quality between the second and third century, BCE. Under the auspices of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE), Father Michele Piccirillo of the Studium Biblicum Franciscum directed the conservation of the mosaics. Notably, it resulted in the public viewing of the stag hunt mosaic for the first time since its discovery. Conservation work was made possible with the support of the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (formerly the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities).
Funding Agency:
Greco-Roman Museum Mosaic Conservation project was made possible with funding by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Grant No. 263-G-00-93-00089-00 and administered by the Egyptian Antiquities Project (EAP) of the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE).