Stone Conservation by Chicora Foundation
We extend our gratitude for all of
Chicora's efforts to educate
researchers for a positive tombstones future!
Information
and images relating to tombstone/monument repair & maintenance
Copyright 2003, Chicora Foundation, Inc.
Michael
Trinkley, Ph.D., Director, Chicora Foundation, Inc., PO Box 8664,
Columbia, SC 29202, 803-787-6910, www.chicora.org
What’s the difference
between “restoration” and “preservation”?
You
may occasionally find a firm advertising that it will “restore”
cemetery markers. What, exactly, does this mean – and what are they
likely to do your stone? By definition, “restoration” means making
the stone like new. Such an
approach ignores the history and patina of the stone and attempts –
using techniques that are often inappropriate and damaging to the
long-term preservation of the stone – to make the stone look like it
did the day it was placed in the cemetery. Restoration firms will often
be happy to take on any project. The only critical consideration in
restoration is what can be charged the client.
Preservation,
on the other hand, attempts to keep a stone from deteriorating further,
stabilizing it, and ensuring that it is there for future generations. No
conservator will claim to be able to work on every type of material or
every monument. There are also some critical considerations in competent
preservation (sometimes called conservation) work:
-
Preservation must ensure careful
planning
-
Expedient or easy solutions often
compound the problem
-
Actions should be the least
intrusive
-
Treatments should respect the
original fabric
-
Actions should be, where
possible, reversible
-
All work must be carefully
documented in case future work becomes necessary
Perhaps
the most important distinction between a restoration firm and a
conservator is that the conservator will be a member of the American
Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC, http://aic.stanford.edu)
and will subscribe to their code of ethics and standards of practice.
The conservator will provide you with a treatment proposal, explaining
exactly what will be done and how; afterwards you will get a treatment
report that specifies in even greater detail what was done and what
materials were used.
I see all sorts of
information on the Web about how I can glue monuments together myself
– What’s wrong with that?
You
can probably find information on how to remove your child’s appendix,
but are you willing to try and risk their life? It is no different with
a 100-year old stone that can’t be replaced. Are you willing to try,
only to make maters worse?
Are
you prepared to purchase all the tools necessary to do the work (the
specialized drills and bits, for example), purchase the specialized
materials (the different types of threaded rod, epoxy, infill, and other
needs), take the training required to use some products (such as the
Jahn mortars that are excellent for infill), and then spend the time to
do it right the first time (since there is no second chance)?
When
should you use stainless steel threaded rod as opposed to a more
flexible nylon rod? And why bother using stainless steel at all? And
what sort of epoxy should be used (nearly all say they can be used on
stone)?
We
live in a “do-it-yourself” world, but we also realize that there are
some things we just can’t do ourselves – some things take special
training, experience, and skill. These photos provide clear examples of
the damage that can be done by “do-it-yourselfers.” Stones that are
beautiful and that have lasted decades can be ruined in only minutes by
well-meaning, but poorly skilled and ill-prepared “do-it-yourselfers.”
Does this mean that there
is nothing I can do to help preserve my family’s monuments?
NO!
The following pages provide information on several things that everyone
can do to help ensure cemeteries are preserved and well-cared for. There
are specific instructions on how to work in a cemetery, resetting tilted
or fallen stones, or cleaning stones. There is a page with a form for
recording different types of markers if you are surveying a cemetery.
And there are a couple of sites you can visit for more information on
cemetery preservation:
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