Carousel horse

Jenny Dickens <jenny.dickens<-a t->dpd< . >vic< . >gov< . >au> writes

>I am looking at proposals for the treatment of carousel horses and
>would like to hear from anyone who may have had experience in this
>area. The usual course of treatment for horses which are going to be
>used seems to be; removal of overpaint; stabilisation and isolation
>of original paint; followed by heavy overpaint to protect the
>original paint from damage.  I envisage that conservators would
>perform the removal of overpaint and stabilisation of the original
>paint while specialist carousel paint restorers would apply the
>overpaint. I am interested to know if this is the usual course of
>treatment in the US or if the conservator(s) and restorer(s) work
>together in other ways. Any other information on this topic would be

Your assumptions about carousel horse restoration is essentially
correct, although one conservator/restorer can do it all if they are
skilled in paint removal, inpainting, and woodworking.

I would suggest that if the horses are to be used on a working
carousel that you do nothing more than put a new layer of paint over
any existing paint with an optional layer of clear coat to protect
it.

If you are going to collect or exhibit the horses, the best thing to
do would be to remove the overpaint down to the original coat and
let it go at that.

I have had a good bit of experience with carousel horse restoration
and if I can be of further assistance please feel free to contact
me.

Nancy Weaver

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 10:73
                Distributed: Tuesday, February 18, 1997
                       Message Id: cdl-10-73-007
                                  ***