The Ermlitz project: Conservation and mounting of 310 square metres of painted wall hangings

Abstract

The Ermlitz manor house near Leipzig includes an enfilade of five parlours, decorated in the 1770s with 310 m2 painted, textile wall hangings. The outcomes of the first three years of a long-term conservation project led by the Conservation Department of the Academy of Fine Arts Dresden are reported. The pilot phase ended in 2011 with the remounting of the treated wall hangings of the Red Parlour. Solutions developed for mechanical surface cleaning, the consolidation of the highly water-sensitive paint layers and the mordant gildings, the conservation of the canvases (thread-by-thread tear mending, inserts, and local supporting with BEVA-coated polyester gauze), and the remounting of the wall hangings with a newly-developed mounting-system based on neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) permanent magnets and hook-and-loop fastener are described.