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Opening up the Soane: conservation techniques
Discover the range of different techniques conservators used during our landmark conservation project.
From 2011 to 2016, we undertook a monumental project called Opening up the Soane to restore and improve parts of the Museum that weren’t previously seen by the public.
Completing this project required the expertise of a team of researchers, conservators and craftspeople. Using footage from a three-part series that was made in 2019, we have focused on some of these techniques, the skills involved, and the people who practiced them. On each page, you can watch a clip detailing the process and learn more about how the work was completed to bring this award-winning project to fruition.
You can also watch the whole series online.
The series and these pages were made possible thanks to the generosity of The Elizabeth Cayzer Charitable Trust.
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Recreating a lost picture frame
How a pair of lost picture frames were recreated using expert frame-making techniques.
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Restoring a stained-glass window
How lost panels of a stained-glass window in the Shakespeare Recess were recreated, and existing panels were restored.
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Creating a cork architectural model
How a lost section of a cork model of the ruins of Pompeii in the Model Room was recreated.
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Uncovering a 19th-century wallpaper
How conservators searched for and uncovered the original wallpaper in the Private Apartments.
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Block printing wallpaper
How the wallpaper in the Private Apartments was researched, and hand printed using traditional techniques.
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Restoring an ornamental plaster ceiling
How a plaster ceiling in the Tivoli Recess, lost in the 19th century, was remade.
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Repairing a Plaster of Paris model
How a delicate Plaster of Paris model damaged by a bomb blast was meticulously restored.
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Recreating a painted glass window
How a lost painted glass window was recreated and assembled.