Inuit clothing and kayak

We have a selection of Inuit clothing and artifacts that are made
from what we believe is seal skin.  Most of the objects are
straightforward but two or three items are proving more difficult
due to their poor condition and/or construction.  One is a man's
hooded jacket which has become very dry and brittle and has suffered
some tears on the sleeves. We think the tears have been caused by
the weight of a wooden hand attached to the end of each straw
stuffed sleeve.  Another item is a full size kayak which is
constructed of seal skin around a frame made of willow and
driftwood.  Both items are very dirty and we think the skin on the
kayak has been coated with whale fat to waterproof it.

We would like some advice please on what to use to clean both of
these items, particularly the kayak as we do not want to remove the
whale fat from the surface of the skin, and what material(s) to use
to support and strengthen the tears. The skin on the jacket is
particularly dry and brittle and it would be good to try and soften
this again does anyone know what we can use to do this.

A search on the internet for advice and books containing advice has
proved fruitless, so any information would be very much appreciated.
Many thanks

Christine Brown and Becky Helliwell
Hull History Centre and Museums
Worship Street
Hull HU1 1HN
UK
+44 1482 317503


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 24:21
                Distributed: Thursday, October 21, 2010
                       Message Id: cdl-24-21-014
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