All done for now

As the summer comes to a close, I look back at all the work I have done. Many projects were not documented just because I failed to bring a camera as often as I would have liked.  For the first time in years casement windows and french doors were scraped of paint and opened up, allowing the house to breath with fresh air and one can now hear the rhythmic ticking of the home's 1883 clock tower, now back in working order.

The Clock Tower

One of many things that sets this house apart is its exterior clock tower. For decades the clock did not run and no one knew the reason. I was curious to see the 1883 weight driven clock movement, a very high quality one built in Philadelphia. After some dusting I tried winding the clock. It took many adjustments to the pendulum, but soon enough the clock was running once again. Though its westminister chimes no longer work due to heavy rust, the clock keeps precise time.

Black Forest Shelf

This old wood shelf sat on the floor of a staircase closet. It was carved out of one piece of wood in Germany's black forest region. Besides being covered by a think grime, the shelf was also missing some wooden details. After an intensive cleaning and oil polish, it came up just great.

Before

After

Onyx Angel Sculpture

This white onyx piece sat in pieces in the basement when I first found it. My first step was to collect up all of the pieces and clean them. After a lot of scrubbing and rinsing with the hose, the bright white stone beneath came shining through. 

Next, I had to put together the broken wings and reattach the female's arms. A 2 part epoxy resin worked perfectly for joining the stone parts. While the glue dried on the sculpture I moved on to repair it's green-stone platform. The large piece of stone had broken right down its center and would be a challenge to repair. I began by routing grooves perpendicular to the main crack. In these grooves I set copper nails in epoxy, forming a strong bond between the stones. 

Once all parts had dried, I fastened on the angel's wings and lifted the sculpture onto its platform. (Nearly crushing all fingers in the process!)

 

Completed Statue with newly carved hands.

Louis XV Hall Table

It seems as though every piece of furniture in this house is damaged in some way, however many of the missing pieces can be found in drawers within the rooms. This table was missing gilt molding on its leg.  After some searching I was able to find both pieces and glued them on. The gold garland in the bottom right corner of the photo was separated and sitting in the basement. Once I found they belonged together, they were cleaned and reattached. 

Brass Boulle Desk

This antique brass boulle desk sits in the main hall of the house. Brass boulle is the term for when furniture is overlaid with brass and inlaid with tortoiseshell, malachite, silver, and other precious materials. The desk's main drawer had a large escutcheon which had fallen off. To reattach, I cut finish nails to the correct size and with the help of a little epoxy, fastened it in place.

Malachite Clock: In Progress

This massive, antique malachite clock was buried beneath boxes and grime in the basement of the mansion.   My job is to clean and repair it. These pictures show the case fully cleaned with the bronze angel waxed and polished. Yet to be done: repair chipped malachite and build clock face/find movement.

7/8/11 Updated Picture: