Zagadnienia estetyki w konserwacji atlasu nieba J. Heweliusza "Firmamentum Sobiescianum sive Uranographia"

• Authors: Pieniążek Zofia

Title variants

EN

ESTHETICAL PROBLEMS IN CONSERVATION OF THE CELESTIAL ATLAS „FIRMAMENTUM SOBIESCIANUM SIVE URANOGRAPHIA” BY J. HEVELIUS, PRINTED IN 1690

• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

The conservation of a work of art does not confine to its sole protection against the further destruction. As its equally important objective is to be considered the restoring of the lost artistic values, or, as is the case with conservation of an usable object, the recovering of its function. However, while carrying out the conservating treatments an unique character and individual features of an original work should not bo lost, for it is the restorer’s task to give the new birth to it in its original form and to safeguard it at the same time making the choice of the most appropriate method. And it is exactly at that point that he faces a decision to what extent he can intervene. The work of art suffered natural ageing and it happens sometimes that in the course of its varying fortunes it changed its appearance or even its character. Thus, every outlining of programme of conservation must be supported by a many-sided investigating of the object itse lf and by the knowledge of period of its cration as well. An object subjected to conservation may always cause controversial assessments as to the way in which some its elements have been handled or to solutions applied by the restorer. This follows from the nature alone of the restorer’s work on an ancient object at wchich, although the processes are subdued to certain rules, an extra-material element is to be found that is being nearly newly created by the restorer. The more the restorer’s action is subdued to that leading function aimed at safeguarding of the work of art and conforms the character of an object the more possible it is to achieve both artistic and style unity of the object restored. The celestial atlas of John Hevelius „Firmamentum Sobiescianum sive Uranographia...” forms the third part of work of that famous astronomer titled „Prodromus astronomiae cum Catalogo fixarum et Firmamentum Sobiescianum...”. Published already after Hev e lius’s death in 1690 thanks to endeavours made by his widow Elizabeth née Koopman it was printed in the printing shop of Jan Zacharias Stolle in Gdańsk and is devoted to the King of Poland John III Sobieski who for many years was the astronomer’s patron. The atlas contains 80 leaves of which the number 58 are the copper plates representing the maps of various constellations, scenes of panegyrical character and the portrait of Hevelius. The copper plates were prepared in the years 1686—1690 and with an exception of the astronomer’s portrait which was made by Lombert Visscher all they are the works of Carl de la Haye who used the drawings of Andreas Stech. The remaining leaves are bearing the Latin (20) and German texts (2) praising the astronomer’s merits for his birthplace — the town of Gdańsk. The celestial atlas under discussion was partly defective as it was deprived of its original binding that was replaced by a provisional file cover. Leaves „bearing the copper plates and those bearing the text were seriously damaged, rotten, covered with brownish-coloured spots and exhibited both numerous losses of paper support and of image portions. The poorly executed pastings have grown to a cause of further damages. Moreover, the separate leaves of atlas varied as to their sizes, these bearing the texts being only half as wide as those covered with images which has additionally grown to a cause of folding and damaging of paper material. While preparing the programme of restoration, in addition to problems of disinfection, cleaning or reinforcing of paper a number of controversial problem have arisen as to inanners in which the materials, techniques and structural solutions should be applied. To the number of the above problems are to be added also those connected with filling the losses of paper and images, and the determining of the size of atlas. Upon an appropriate solution was greatly depending the final shape of the object under discussion. It is well known that the supplementation of paper losses, quite irrespectively of method applied, should exhibit some esthetical values. A supplementation integrated with the object, forming a harmonious entity, makes it possible to focus the v iw e r ’s attention on artistic side of the exhibited work of art. However, the manner in which supplementation is being done is to a great extent conditioned by the kind of the object, its state of preservation and the localization of the loss. The leaves bearing the copper plates were supplemented at their cut edges and at the spine (i.e. structural) part with the hand-made paper; with the same kind of paper were also supplemented the tex t leaves in their margins outside the matter. In view of a considerable weakening of paper support in central portions of the copper plate images the losses situated within these fields were filled with the unsized China paper the twro or three layers of which, depending upon the thickness of support, were glued one on another. Losses in tex t leaves situated within the matter were supplemented with the Japanese tissue paper. As the copper plate images exhibit considerable damages an ideal solution would consist in placing of the separate restored plates of celestial atlas in the passe partout mountings protecting them against mechanical damages. It has been resigned of such a solution as the objective of restoration consisted in bringing the whole set of maps back to their original state and, in addition, together with texts they constitute an integral entity. Thus, the only treatment applied consisted in an additional reinforcing of each leaf of atlas through its lining (glueing on) with the Japanese tissue paper layer. Supplementation of losses in image forms one of the final measures within the restoration process that restores to a work of art its lost artistic values. The manner in which the losses in image are to be supplemented is suggested by the work itself, its character and the function it has to perform. It happens sometimes that in the object restored the losses in image are being left not supplemented. It is possible when the image composition does not dominate over its background and the supplemented portion remains in harmony with the general colour tone of the object. The damaged fragments of a drawing can be supplemented by partial restoration as, for instance, the supplementation of the damaged shape. Sometimes it is sufficient to fill the framing, an ornamental border of an illustration to properly enclose the composition with its other damaged places left without any treatment. Entirely different is the problem consisting in filling of minor losses scattered throughout the whole area of an object which, for example, may be required in illustrations having the nature of a painting — as are the aquatints and mezzotints — where the damaged composition is predominated by losses. In celestial atlas in question two kinds of damages to image were found and thus two different manners of their supplementation had to be adopted. The minor losses, in many cases disfiguring the image, were fully supplemented. Those covering bigger fragments of image in constellation maps were supplemented schematically through the application of thin lines linking the fragments preserved and through an imperceptible . re-arranging of compositions. The absence of original binding and thev arying sizes of the separate leaves could suggest that the original format of atlas was quite different, for instance, half that actual, with the bigger leaves folded. However, taking into account an appropriate protection of the restored leaves and also the esthetical reasons there was le ft the size of atlas with its plates unfolded. Only one additional element has been introduced in back cover, i.e. its negligible thickening which allowed to place the leaves of varying widths on the same plane and to prevent the deformation of paper. The restoration described above could, of course, be carried out in another way, too. However, the above procedure was adopted, for it allowed to preserve all values of object and its essential features at the same time enabling to achieve the desirable result, i.e. an esthetical shape of the restored work of art. The celestial atlas of J. Hevelius was subjected to restoration »in the atelier of restoration of graphic art and old books, Warsaw Branch of The Ateliers for Conservation of Cultural Property within the period from March 1970 to September 1971. The restoration was carried out by T. Tuszewski, Ass. Prof., who restored the text leaves and Z. Pieniążek, M.A., who restored the copper plates and made the binding. In 1972 an annual prize “For the distinguished achievements in conservation” was awarded to those employed at the above restoration.

Keywords

PL

konserwacja atlasu nieba Jana Heweliusza; Firmamentum Sobiescianum sive Uranographia; uzupełnianie ubytków papieru; uzupełnianie ubytków rysunku; format atlasu nieba

• Publisher: Narodowy Instytut Dziedzictwa
• Journal: Ochrona Zabytków
• Year: 1974
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 285-294

Dates

published

1974

Contributors

author

Pieniążek Zofia

• mgr, ASP — Wydział Konserwacji Dzieł Sztuki, Warszawa