Alum tawed pigskin

Maria Chiara Brancaleoni <m.chiarabrancaleoni [at] libero__it>
writes

I am a book conservator and I live and work in Umbria. Currently,
I'm working on a German binding from the 16th century. The cover is
bound in alum tawed pigskin and it is very dirty. I'm aware of the
difficulties related to the treatment of this kind of leather, and I
would like to know what is the best conservation treatment for
cleaning and (if possible) lubricating this kind of material.

The best course of treatment is a non-abrasive dry-cleaning method.
You can try the "soot" sponges made for cleaning smoke damaged
surfaces, or the soft synthetic foam sponges sold for removing
cosmetics. The soot sponges should be available from archival
product distributors and conservation materials suppliers.  The
cosmetic sponges are widely available.

You should be able to remove most of the soiling, depending on it's
nature.  Tawed skin is very susceptible to water and solvents, so
avoid using any liquids in cleaning.  Lubricants are not used on
tawed skin materials as they will not be effective and will cause
darkening and staining.  Tawed skin will respond to controlled
humidification, however, in the case of a book cover, that would not
be recommended due to the effects on the other materials and
structure.

Paul S. Storch
Objects Conservator
Museum Science Consultants
St. Paul, MN


                                  ***
                  Conservation DistList Instance 25:15
                Distributed: Tuesday, September 20, 2011
                       Message Id: cdl-25-15-013
                                  ***