Reproduction of museum objects

I would like to know if any conservator has experience or has dealt
with the procedures for reproduction of ceramic, stone and metal
objects from an archeological and ethnographic collection.

At the Ethnographic Museum in Buenos Aires we have received a
proposal to reproduce pieces with the next specifications: The
pieces should be cleaned first from dust and grease from
manipulation. Afterwards the piece is covered with Siltom that is an
alginate that is soluble in water and forms a film that will then
come out in flakes.

After that a 3M Express molding material is placed (this is used in
odontology). and as the final stage a stone gesso is placed and once
the mould is ready the original piece can be taken out. The entire
process lasts three hours.

We are aware of the needs of assessing the objects before, and also
the fact that the pieces should be cleaned taking into consideration
that they are also study materials for the researchers . Any
suggestion or comment will be welcomed regarding materials and
techniques for reproduction.

Maria Esteva
Museo Etnografico
J.B. Ambrosetti
Universidad de Buenos Aires

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 12:22
                  Distributed: Friday, August 28, 1998
                       Message Id: cdl-12-22-006
                                  ***