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• Introduction
• The N'laka'pamux Territory
• About N'laka'pamux Basketry
  and the work of James Alexander Teit (1864-1922)
• The Pearson Basket Collection at the LCM
• N'laka'pamux Basketry Making Today
• Conservation of the Baskets
• N'laka'pamux Basket Makers
• Glossary of Terms
• Bibliography
• Acknowledgements

Conservation Treatment for 993.21.27

(from Documentation provided by Fraser-Spafford Ricci, Art & Archival Conservation, Inc.)

Condition report before conservation:

Very poor condition. Basket has flanged recessed from edge that holds lid in place. Basket: dust and dirt; tears / breaks in recessed flange with losses of cedar bark along 2/3 of circumference, flange hangs loose, moderate deformation and sagging of basket. Lid: heavy dirt on lid, tear in edge of lid; lid does not sit safely on basket due to structural damage on basket rim; slight deformation

Conservation Treatment:

1. Dry Surface Cleaning. Dry surface cleaned with brush/suction to remove loose dust and dirt. Further cleaning to remove grime using Chemsponge in areas without imbrication.

2. Solvent Cleaning. Tiny accretions removed from imbrication and basketry on lid and sides using 2% Orvus neutral detergent in water on swabs, rinsed with water on swabs.

3. Reforming. Deformed sides softened slightly using moisture (moistened blotter through Goretex membrane) and then allowed to dry with a shaped pad in the interior.

4. Repair.

Two tears in the basket near the top were repaired with hand-torn Japanese tissue and wheat starch paste adhesive. These repairs were toned with Fabercastel watercolour pencil in water with gum arabic.

• The bark rim is torn in several places and one portion was broken free. The bark rim sections were re-aligned, the loose one replaced and these were edge-adhered using Jade 403 polyvinyl acetate emulsion. The repairs were not intended to have full strength since the woven splits hold the rim in place. One break across the rim was strengthened on the interior with a piece of Japanese tissue, toned with watercolour pencil in water with gum arabic.

5. Reconstruction.

• The paper conservator prepared a paper material to emulate the missing portion of the bark rim. Japanese tissue of appropriate weight was laminated by folding into layers, adhered with thinned Japanese tissue and then weighted under blotter. A flange of tissue was left projecting from one side of the replacement rim, to secure to the interior of the basket.
• The objects conservator then toned the rim/flange with Gamblin conservation colours in ethanol/VM and P naptha and with watercolour to match the basket. This reconstructed rim was shaped by hand into a curved shape and then was cut to size with scalpels.
• The flange of the rim was adhered to the inside of the basket using wheat starch paste. The rim was adhered in sections, each held with paperclips through hollytex.
• The interior flange portions were again touched-up with Gamblin conservation colours to emulate the basket texture.
• The woven splits were placed onto the reconstructed rim in the appropriate position and adhered in place using CM Bond W-2 polyvinyl acetate emulsion. Because most of these splits are missing, the woven splits are only lightly held in place.

6. Storage Mount.

• The basket is supported on the interior with a carved ethafoam shape, covered with double-knit fabric and is nested in acid-free tissue covered ethafoam depressions in a coroplast box.

Post-Treatment Condition:

Fading - moderate, in imbrication; deformations - slight, at imbrication on one side, may be inherent; losses basketry, moderate, many of the worn splits at rim are missing and one small area at the edge of the lid is missing (approximately 5 coils) but this is stable; other - basket is conserved so part of rim is a reconstruction and two tear repairs are visible as cracks in basketry near rim.

View Slideshow Detailing Treatment (PDF 6,500 KB)