What is preservation?

Forvarsla byggist á ólíkum fræðigreinum, svo sem efnafræði, eðlisfræði, líffræði, listasögu, fornleifafræði, sagnfræði, þjóðfræði og siðfræði. Forvarsla byggist á skilningi á vísindalegum eiginleikum þeirra efna sem gripirnir eru úr, hvernig þessi efni eldast og bregðast við áhrifum umhverfisins. Þessi vitneskja gerir forvörðum kleift að koma í veg fyrir skemmdir á gripum með því að hefta eyðileggjandi áhrif. Einnig er sögulegt (menningarsögulegt og listsögulegt) samhengi gripanna mikilvægt og getur því haft mikil áhrif á meðferð þeirra. Öll efni sem notuð eru í viðgerðir eru vandlega valin með tilliti til þess að þau skaði ekki gripina og að unnt sé að fjarlægja þau síðar.

• A treatment to make the preservation of artifacts stable or inhibit their degradation.
• Repairs with the aim of bringing damaged or degraded artefacts to their original condition without losing their aesthetic or historical context.
• Studies of artifacts to determine what materials were used in their manufacture or older repairs.
• Investigations of artifacts to cut out the cause and extent of damage or alteration from the original appearance.
• Preparation of case reports and photos of the condition of the intervention before and after treatment.
• Preventive measures to prevent damage by advising and monitoring the environment of objects, whether on display or in storage, with particular reference to light levels, temperature and humidity.
• Provide advice on packaging, storage and transportation of sensitive artifacts.
• Keep abreast of the latest research, technology and advances in the field of prevention.

Following a fire in the Reykjavík Art Museum in August 2002, the Predecessors of the National Museum undertook repairs to wooden sculptures by Ásmund Sveinsson from the Ásmund Sveinsson belonging to the Ásmund Museum, which belongs to the Reykjavík Art Museum. The sculptures had been damaged by water and smoke.

The first stage of treatment involved wiping the pieces. To prevent further damage caused by water, the works were allowed to dry slowly. For this, a tent was built to control the drying process, which lasted for ten weeks.

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Next, the surface was cleaned of soot and other impurities:

The final stage of the treatment is to bring the sculptures into a demonstrable condition, which involves, among other things, repairing surface damage and gluing together parts that were loose.

The Hökull of John of Arason was made by Bishop Jón Arason and gave to the church to Hólar in Hjaltadal. He is probably North German and from the beginning of the 16th century. The cross on the back is all embroidered with the greatest art, with gold and silk embroidery. On it are sewn seven pictures depicting events from the story of Jesus Christ and Mary. In 1856, the statue was sent to Copenhagen for safekeeping and brought to the National Museum of Iceland in 1930.

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Antiques dug out of the ground that do not receive proper treatment and care can easily decompose in a very short time, this applies equally to artifacts made of organic materials (such as wood, leather and bones) and metals. At the burial site, prevention consists in appropriate packaging, while treatment to stabilize artifacts and inhibit their deterioration is carried out in the National Museum's prevention workshop.

As an example of a common prevention method, freeze drying is considered today the best method for preserving antiques made of organic materials, such as wood and leather. The method is applied in order to dry organic matter without further damage to the cell walls occurring during the evaporation of water. The treatment involves placing the articles in certain preparations (such as polyethyleneglycol or glycerol), freezing and finally freeze-drying. Thus, the preservation of the original form of artifacts can be promoted, and they can be studied for warmth.

Cleaning metals, such as iron and copper, is a painstaking work that requires great precision and patience. X-rays of the artifacts are often taken to detect their original surface, which is usually covered by soil and metal deposits. X-rays can detect embedded metals, e.g. silver or copper on iron.

Ironworks are cleaned with sandblasting equipment, while artifacts made of other metals such as copper, lead and silver are cleaned with various tools often with the help of microscopes.

Metals dug out of the ground are in most cases more at risk of corrosion than other metals, so it turns out to be necessary to closely monitor the condition of metal parts whether they are on display or in storage.

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