25 Selection tests for restorers are documented in the archives of 1769–98 and 1848; since 1936
they appear quite regularly.
26 Archives of the Louvre, P 16 (May 1848): draft by Villot, unsigned but in his handwriting.
27 Archives of the Louvre, P 16 (1882).
28 On the history of the restoration of paintings at the Louvre, see Emile-Mâle 1991.
29 Archives of the Louvre, P 16 (1942–56); see, for example, Castor, estimate of May 1953 for the
repair of the Retable du Parlement de Paris:“to unglue all the sliding bars of the cradling, which
were glued by a former painting [sic], to make each bar function in its notched slats to secure
the effectiveness of the cradling. To tighten the two vertical fractures and fasten them with
notched dovetails, the notched slats constricting the placing of the dovetails, which were taken
offand then put back: 16,000 Fr.”
30 Archives of the Louvre, P 16 (1957–74, invoice of 28 June 1957).
31 Archives of the Louvre, P 16 (1942–56, Castor, invoice of 15 December 1955).
32 Museum1955; and Archives of the Louvre, P 16 (1953), Castor, van Eyck, La Vierge du
Chancelier Rolin.
33 Xylamon: pentachorophenol and octochloronaphthalene (Baldi et al. 1992:217–18).
34 Archives of the Louvre, P 16 (1942–56), Castor: (M 503) Rosselli, Annonciation.
35 Rf 1956, Sassetta, La Vierge et l’Enfant Jesus entourés de six anges, Saint Antoine de Padoue,and
Saint Jean l’Evangéliste. These three poplar panels, previously unbacked, were entrusted to the
Istituto Centrale del Restauro in Rome between 1956 and 1959; the central panel was previ-
ously restored by Brisson-Leguay in 1903–4 but split in 1956. It was treated by (very narrow)
incisions and inlays, then received a modern Italian-style cradling “of the edge [de chant]”
(metal crossbars sliding on wooden cleats).
36 Rf 1762-1, Josse Lieferinxe, Le Calvaire;the walnut was particularly burred and worm-eaten,
and the boards had come completely apart. Entrusted in 1964 and 1965 to the Istituto Centrale
del Restauro, the panel received threesliding crossbars.
37 On transfer in France, see Marot 1950; Emile-Mâle 1957, 1962, 1982a, 1982b, 1983a, 1983b,
1987; Emile-Mâle and Borelli 1957; Emile-Mâle and Delsaux 1984, 1987. On transfer in Italy,
see Baruffaldi 1834; Bodart 1970; and Bergeon 1975.
38 The sparing transfer was practiced in 1747 on Van den Meulen and that of 1748 on Palma
Vecchio’s Mise au tombeau;see Vindry 1969:46–47. The phrase “sparing transfer” means that
the support is saved, or spared; cf. Vindry 1969. G. Emile-Mâle, in conjunction with the
chemist Jean Petit (former director of research at the Centre National de la Recherche
Scientifique), has demonstrated the technical possibility ofsuch a procedure, although it is not
without real danger, as this lifting of the paint layer involves a distinctive microfragmentation.
This phenomenon is noted in Andrea del Sarto’s Charité(transferred in 1750–51) and in
Raphael’s Le Grand Saint Michel(Louvre), which must have been transferred in the same way
in 1751.
39 The transfer of the support with destruction of the original wood has been the usual proce-
dure, in any case, ever since Raphael’s La Vierge de Foligno(cf. O’Reilly 1801). It was probably
already the procedure used for Raphael’s Sainte Famille(Louvre), transferred in 1777, which
has proved to be in only a slightly fragmented condition. L’Incrédulité de Saint Thomasby
Salviati (Louvre), transferred in 1809 by the younger Hacquin, is in only a slightly fragmented
condition, as is Raphael’s Le Portrait de Jeanne d’Aragon(Louvre), transferred in 1810 by the
younger Hacquin (cf. Lautraite 1983).
40 Archives of the Louvre, P 16 (26 May 1799).
41 Archives of the Louvre, Accounts, Year 11 (1803), fourth quarter; and Emile-Mâle 1983b.
42 Proceedings of the administration of the Musée Central des Arts, 28 nivôse, Year 7
(17 January 1799).
43 Archives of the Louvre, P 16 (1882).
44 Archives of the Louvre, P 16 (10 July 1755).W P S: T H Y H F 283