Restoration of an Iranian dish from the 15th century

In January 2004, in connection with preparations for the exhibition Iran in the Hermitage. The Formation of Collections, the Laboratory for Scientific Restoration of Works of Applied Art received a unique Iranian dish from the collection of the Oriental Department of the State Hermitage. At the present time, we know of only one other dish with ornamentation similar to this one and it is in the Metropolitan Museum in New York. The article comes from the Daghestan settlement of Kubachi, which is known for the large quantity of works of applied art kept in the homes of local residents.

The dish was in need of restoration if it were to remain on exhibition, because an old simple restoration that was done in the settlement of Kubachi no longer was satisfactory both from the standpoint of durability and from the aesthetic point of view. The dish had been restored in a simple way after it had broken into three parts. Matching holes of around 4-5 mm in diameter had been drilled into the ceramics and the parts of the dish were joined together by thick metal wire. In the process of disassembly, it became clear that no glue had been used.

In Kubachi there is an old tradition of decorating the walls of living quarters with "exhibits" from the household collections. Usually the walls are painted blue, covered with carpets and then, from ceiling to floor, they hang up porcelain, faience, clay, copper and brass bowls, basins and dishes. After the dish in question had been "restored", it evidently was hung up on the wall and decorated the interior of the house (on the back side there are special holes).

In the Laboratory, the exhibit was disassembled and all traces of the old restoration were eliminated. The work was carried out by art restorer of the highest category Ye.P. Cherepanova. Four small ceramic fragments were carefully removed from a wooden addition, freed from dirt and glued down in their places. The lost part on the side was filled in using a plaster polymer. The holes drilled into the dish by the preceding "restoration" and the seams were filled in with acrylic filler. Tinting was done in the colour and tone of the original, with only slight distinction from it. The design was reconstructed only on the surfaces of the seam and the holes. As a result, this unique Iranian dish is once again suitable for exhibition.

Iranian dish
After restoration
Larger view

Front side of the dish with a large fragment missing and a wooden addition
Before restoration
Larger view

The soiled surface of the back side of the dish
Before restoration
Larger view

Two large fragments of the dish
During disassembly
Larger view

Dish with a fragment of the rim redone from plasterpolymer
During restoration
Larger view