Mid 20th Century Pub Sign
The sign was thought to be made around mid-19th century for the Red Lion pub in Caister, Lincolnshire. The sign has been hand painted on the one side with a gradient blue and green background, feur de lis accents, and the red lion. The pub was shortly owned by the Tetley Brewery Company and displays the name across the bottom of the sign. The Red lion letters on the top of the sign had been gilt, meaning gold sheets had been adhered to the letters to add extra lustre to the appearance of the sign. When the sign came into the lab it had been found left vacant on the ground, therefore ivy and dirt had attached to the surface. Some of the paint had also flaked off over the years. Therefore, the sign was cleaned and stripped of its old varnish layer to remove the plants and dirt debris. The object was then in painted on the areas that had suffered large loss of paint. The plan was to leave some areas to show the aged and use of the sign, but make the object look aesthetically pleasing so the original artists work can be appreciated. The owner/custodian is Caister Museum.
18th Century Oriental Porcelain Dish
The dish was made in the Kangxi period in China within the emperor’s reign from 1661 to 1722. The hallmark is a double blue ring signifying the period, and an illustration of a mirror identifying the maker. The dish is made from porcelain, which is identifiable from the colour and low porosity of the body. The ceramic was fired at a high temperature between 1200-1400°C in a kiln, a cobalt blue colour over glaze had been added and re-fired amongst other decorative colours in the centre of the dish. An artist then hand painted the gold brush strokes on the blue enamel, and other colours to outlie and detail the dish. The ceramic had one large break to the structure missing a piece of the dish. The surface of the ceramic was also dirty, and the fragment had residue of old adhesive from a previous repair. This was removed from the break edge so the fragment could be re-adhered, as well as the surface cleaned with detergent and distilled water. Areas of loss such as the break edge were in painted to restore the ceramics aesthetic value ready for display. The custodian/owner is Belvoir Castle.
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