Recent Acquisitions
Portrait Restoration Project
Bass Otis
(American, 1784 - 1861)
Portrait of Reverend Heinrich Christian Helmuth
Early 19th century
Oil on canvas
29 x 24 1/2 inches
The canvas was very loosely stretched, fabric torn around
tacks, hole in the eye, and several small punctures.
The
surface was very dirty and covered with an unknown
synthetic varnish and possibly egg white, holding
in place
deeply imbedded dirt.
The conservator removed the canvas from the original frame and began
the laborious process of removing years of dirt and soot. The canvas
is too thick and uneven to reline, so the conservator reinforced it with
loose muslin lining to prevent future cracking.
In this photo (9-16-05), cleaning of the portrait is about
50% complete. The removal of dark blue top layers
reveals bold brushstrokes and rich coloring.
The overpaint has been heavily applied in passages, so the conservator
has removed this with scalpel and chemicals (hence the hole in the eyebrow
-- this will be filled with varnish and paint).
The Lindemann Herbal
A handwritten manuscript compiled
by Philipp Lindemann in Stark
County, Ohio, between ca. 1835 and
1867 containing 432
watercolor drawings of medical herbs
followed by handwritten
descriptions of the plants in German.
The drawings and descriptions
are numbered so that they can be
cross-indexed. An additional
section lists the various names
used for each plant. Some of the
descriptions are written on the
back of correspondence received by
Lindemann, the latest dated 1867.
The paper the manuscript is
written on dates from the 1830s
and 1860s (there seem to be two
distinctly different types of paper
used). The m
anuscript
has various
tipped-in pieces of paper of varying
sizes containing handwritten
notes. Includes indexes. The manuscript
has a leather back cover, but is missing the front cover and spine. It
is not clear if the manuscript had a title page because it was intended
for Lindemann's personal consultation and reflects the wear of many years
of usage. This is the only known manuscript herbal from the world of 19th
century German-American culture.
Acquisitions source: Purchased with the generous financial assistance of the Max Kade German-American Research Institute, from the Roughwood Collection, 2004.
Biographical note: Philipp Lindemann, a German immigrant from the area of Limbach in the western Palatinate, was an herb doctor and powwower who settled in or near Canton, Ohio.
