Universidad Externado de Colombia

comunicacionesuec@uexternado.edu.co

For the past eleven years (1998-2009), the Cultural Heritage Studies Faculty of the Externado de Colombia University has undertaken the restoration of 42 pieces of the manger belonging to the Colonial Art Museum of Bogota. Clearly an example of knowledge applied to the preservation of the Natural Treasures of Colombia and humanity.

Keywords: Restoration, preservation of works of art, cultural property preservation, Cultural heritage, Cultural property, ancient art.

Key Words Plus: Art-Conservation and Restoration, Cultural property, Protection of Art, Ancient.

Few artistic samples have been recovered from the colonial period of the New Granada. One is the manger of the Colonial Art Museum of Bogota, testimony of Quito artistry, characterized by its nativity scenes of the XVIII century. Consisting of 73 polychrome, carved wood figures, it was purchased by the Museum in 1944 from Miss Inés Rubio Marroquín, for the sum of 800 pesos.

The artistic wealth of this work is based on the possibility of discovering the Colony's various social levels and thus shed light on this time period. María Constanza Toquica Clavijo, director of the Museum, stated "more specifically, I believe that in the context of the baroque celebrations, nativity in this case, the parodic and carnavalesque figures should be read as representation of the inhabitants residing in remote areas from the colonial centers: native Indians, afro-descendants and mestizos".

After several decades of exhibiting and moving the manger, as part of the centennial tradition of Catholicism, the wood showed signs of deterioration — cracks, fragmentation, biological infection, among others —, due to natural ageing of the levels or external causes — polychrome peeling, fissures, dirt —. Due to its significance as one of the few samples of the Granada Culture in the country, in 1998 the Cultural Heritage Studies Faculty of the Externado de Colombia University assumed the restoration of 42 artistic pieces, by means of an interdisciplinary work project between students and researchers of the Conservation and Restoration of Personal Property, the Natural Science Laboratory and the Social Construction and Cultural Heritage programs of the University.

This work has gained international appreciation, has crossed frontiers to exhibit its impeccability, recognizing the work of the "Alma Mater", unique in Colombia in this area, committed to the preservation of our heritage, reliving history and building a future.

The different items that make up the manger belong in a general sense to the same school, yet correspond to various time periods and manufacturing techniques, thereby requiring diverse technical treatments that are evidenced by the varied levels of details and figure decorations. This characteristic demonstrates the workshop operations, indicating that several hands contributed to the manufacture of a single piece.

In the studies carried out by the Cultural Heritage Studies Faculty, wood used to create thirty pieces of the manger is "green", — latifoliada —, found in tropical zones. In most representations, carving from one block of wood prevails, which explains the volume dimensions and the limited movement of the pieces. It also shows a detailed outline of the clothing and hair, sanding of the wood, emphasizing the meticulous polishing of the legs, hands, arms and faces and gluing on the support base of the figures.

The stratigraphic studies realized in the Faculty Laboratory indicate that the mold used for the manger sculptures is: a preparation base consisting of plaster and a protein gluing agent, possibly animal tail, followed by a layer of filmo- graphic material made up solely of glue and lastly, a pictorial layer.

Of special interest is the ornamentation process, present in the Magi's horses, made of intertwined textile fabric, later glued and plastered.

The polychrome process was carried out using two main techniques: the incarnation, aimed at imitation of skin and the "stew", which references the mimesis of the clothing fabric. Also noted were the use of drying oils as gluing agent and the implementation of diverse pigments, such as copper resin for the color green, vermillion and Brazil lacquer for shades of red; indigo for blue tones, oropiment and Indian yellow for yellow hues and white lead and black for charcoal. In other instances, scientific analysis determined the presence of cochinilla, a natural red pigment utilized by artists in Europe.

The great variety of materials and techniques employed in the manufacture of the pieces point out the different workmanship and time periods, providing an important example of the wealth and knowledge of the local artisans.

The stratigraphic study permits identification of the composite material characteristics, their properties and the transformations generated in different contexts and time. The Program for the Conservation and Restoration of Personal Property of the Externado de Colombia University obtained small samples of the sculptures by microscopic and micro- chemical techniques, analyzed the materials composition of each layer and a number of its properties.

Stratigraphy has become an utmost necessity when a polychrome sculpture is submitted for restoration, as it allows the determination of the number of layers of the piece, its thickness, manufacture technique and any interventions made during its trajectory. The comparison of stratigraphic cuts allows placing an object in time, sculpturing workshop, and also provides a foundation for identifying the artist. This technique is a priceless tool in understanding works that have been subjected to successive interventions and in this way, establish the trajectory of a sculpture as to pictorial layers and preparations.

The electronic microscopic analyses performed on several of the manger pieces, allowed the corroboration that the base preparation is made of plaster. Hydrated calcium sulfate (CaS0₄2H₂0) was noted in the spectrum; sulfur (S) and calcium (Ca), principal components of plaster. It was also possible to determine that the bowl is made up by clay minerals, rich in iron, accounting for its reddish color.

The restoration of the manger of the Colonial Art Museum was a unique opportunity for student edification and maturity of the constantly changing teaching process. In addition, it offered the opportunity to observe the evolution in the value and presentation of the pieces, as a result of the technical, esthetic, historic and iconographic discoveries that offered the Museum a second look at the collection and to establish a more dynamic museographic presentation, suitable to the newly rescued images after the restoration process.

Top