height. The slings also prevented accidental damage that could have
resulted if the end blocks had contacted the panel painting.
For longer splits or disjoins, it was necessary to use two or more
strap pairs to concentrate the pressure across the entire panel. The num-
ber and the location of straps and the lengths of the end blocks deter-
mined the location and distribution of pressures.
Alignment was achieved with screw clamps and girder lengths,
as discussed for the previous case. In this case the girders were placed on
either side of the panel with their longest axes vertical and parallel to the
joints or splits. The clamps could be repositioned to adjust alignment.
Then, the girders could be unbolted at the bottom and pivoted away on
either side of the panel to provide access for glue application. The bars
could then be rebolted in virtually the same position, with only slight
adjustments to the alignment clamps being necessary.
Each disjoin was treated consecutively across the panel. As work
progressed, the girders and clamps were moved to the adjacent disjoin.
There were major disadvantages to the vertical apparatus. For one
thing, access to the lower edge was limited—a problem that could be over-
come by an improvement in design. Moreover, if a painting is especially
heavy and if movement (from changes in moisture content, for example)
occurs during treatment, the resulting friction would impose constraint.
Another drawback of the vertical apparatus is that gravity can adversely
affect the flowof adhesives and consolidants. The vertical orientation can
make it difficult to control tools in such procedures as using chisels to fit
wooden inserts into areas ofsevere insect damage, especially toward the
lower edge. One final caution is that the vertical orientation can be used
only in cases where the paint is secure or well faced, or there may be
losses due to flaking.Most described treatments were done while the author was an intern spe-
cializing in panel painting conservation at the the Hamilton Kerr Institute
(HKI). Thanks go to the Getty Grant Program and to the Samuel H. Kress
Foundation, New York, for funding the internship. Other treatments were
completed while the author continued at the HKI, employed as a conser-
vator and research associate, thanks to funding by the Leverhulme Trust,
London, and the Samuel H. Kress Foundation and the HKI. The author
thanks Ian McClure for his support and, above all, for allowing him free-
dom in pursuing these treatments.1 In this text the term rejoiningrefers to the gluing of either splits in the wood support or joints
that have failed, or disjoined,due to a glue line being too weak or deteriorated. The term joint
is used more generally and refers to the line where two wood members meet or would meet,
whether the joint is intact, disjoined, or split.
2 The joint edges are displaced such that one edge is above and the other is below the general
plane of the panel. Such misalignment is sometimes called a stepor stepping.
3 The method described in this article utilizes specialized apparatus to rejoin a particular break
in a single gluing procedure. In contrast, the insert method usually rejoins segments of a dis-
join in sequential steps so that the joint is treated with successive gluing procedures. The
insert method generally avoids the use of joining pressure as defined in this article.Notes
Acknowledgments
430 Brewer