Late 18th Century correspondence
between Italian sculptor Antonio Canova
and art collectors and dealers
Carmarthen Archives
The Canova Archive is comprised of sixty manuscripts written in iron gall ink on handmade rag papers, many with wax seals and watermarks. Their condition ranged from poor to unusable with severe splitting, tears and losses. There were folds and creases throughout, some original, but others due to poor handling and storage. There was evidence of iron gall ink corrosion thus both paper and inks were vulnerable to further decay. Treatments included surface cleaning and repairs using gelatine repair tissue. No humidity treatments were used due to the unstable nature of iron gall ink. Minimal pressing was carried out to reduce cockling and creasing without removal of original fold lines. Finally, the ‘Fascicule’ Bodleian Library manuscript storage method was used to provide a safe and secure environment for this collection.
