The furniture in Soane’s house is an interesting mixture of works designed by Soane, specially collected items and domestic Regency furniture. It’s probably more vulnerable to visitor damage than other objects and we also keep a sharp eye out for signs of woodworm. When individual pieces require more complex treatments, the team collaborate with specialists.
Written by Chiara Raponi, Conservator
If you were to enter the Picture Room on the 9th of August 1825, you might have encountered Joseph Michael Gandy, draughtsman, artist and architect, observing what we see in his watercolour view of the Picture Room (below, left). At the centre, the cork model of the Temple of Vesta at Tivoli is standing on top of an oval ivory table, with two ivory armchairs accompanying it, one slightly emerging from the background corner.
With the crimson velvet cushions unfortunately no longer surviving, the armchairs are today standing in the four corners of the room (above, right). Their display history is as rich as their provenance, design, manufacture and conservation history. Made in Murshidabad for the Western market in the late 18th century, with a combination of Western and Asian stylistic motifs, they are made of carved ivory, with gilt decorations and a rattan cane seat. Information about their historical context and provenance, including Soane’s belief that they had once belonged to Tipu Sultan’s palace can be found in the Museum’s online catalogue.
Since their return to the Picture Room in 2020, the focus of the conservation team has been finding a balance between the benefit of display and long-term preservation. The ivory armchairs are a good example of the unique conservation challenges that the open display of the Museum offers, especially where common control measures, such as physical barriers and display cases, cannot be implemented.
Their current location allows accessibility and the fulfillment of the Museum’s mission to conserve the spaces as close as they were left by Soane, but at the same time increases their vulnerability to damage from accidental impact and degradation factors, such as fluctuations in environmental conditions. Like wood, ivory is in fact a hygroscopic material, which absorbs and desorbs humidity from the air. Condition reporting and routine monitoring of both the environment and the condition of the armchairs is therefore essential. During condition checking, conservators are on the lookout for any visible change to the surface and the structure. For this task, thorough photographic documentation can be very useful as a reference for stable conditions.
Currently, a black ribbon, hung across each chair, is functioning as a subtle visual indicator to visitors. An important aspect of control measures against accidental impact is carried out by the Visitor Assistants present in the space during opening hours. Ultimately, acknowledging their presence and physical vulnerability, especially when opening the planes at selected times, might be the least high-tech but the most fruitful solution, although very challenging on busy days.
Since their introduction in the Soane’s collection, we know of two main past interventions, the most recent carried out in 1986 by Spink Restoration Workshop, and the other commissioned by Soane in 1833 to George Carstairs, described in that year bill as “Reprg three Antique Ivoery Chairs Make Good all deficiencies in Cutting & Gilding the ivory & Put a new Cane Bottom to One of Do £6.15”.
Planned conservation work will include light surface cleaning and adhesion of detached fragments. For long-term preservation, however, the collection care work will require regular attention, and collaborative efforts. The ivory armchairs in the Picture Room are no doubt one of the many objects in Sir John Soane’s collection that require a holistic and balanced approach.
