Topographic view from Theatrum Statuum Regiae Celsitudinis Sabaudiae Ducis, Pedemontii Principis, Cypri Regis
«This magnificent first edition, two-volume book, Theatrum Statuum Regiae Celsitudinis Sabaudiae Ducis, Pedemontii Principis, Cypri Regis, from the Department of Drawings and Prints, was published in Amsterdam by the Dutch publisher and cartographer Joan Blaeu in 1682. The book contains engraved plates showing aerial views of the land that belonged to the Duchy of Savoy, along with descriptions in Latin. The Theatrum Sabaudiae, as a survey of both natural and urban views, also captures, often in the finest details, glimpses of its population and their activities. One of the plates reveals the name of the artist, Dutch printmaker, and cartographer Johannes de Ram.»
Left: Front board; Right: Back board
The book is oversized (Vol. I is 58.6 x 37.5 x 6.9 cm) and bound in full vellum with gold stamping. While the original binding of both volumes was in fair condition, the main conservation concerns were creased folios and many tears along the edges.
Left: Before; Right: After
Some of the engraved plates were protruding along the top edge of the book, resulting in further damage due to inside creases. Additional condition concerns included the detached and missing headbands, as well as detached and torn, brittle flyleaves with missing fragments.
Left: Before; Center: During; Right: After
Our treatment included thorough dry-cleaning of the pages using a soft brush and vulcanized rubber erasures. Prior to mending all the tears with Japanese paper and wheat starch, the stubborn creases were humidified in order to relax and flatten the paper.
Left: Before; Right: After
We created a humidity chamber that consisted of Mylar, Gore-Tex (waterproof and breathable fibrous material), and thin blotter. The process consisted of first placing the Gore-Tex, then placing the wet blotter paper, and finally the adding the Mylar in layers on the verso of the plates.
Andrijana Sajic at work conserving the book
After one hour of humidification, the relaxed paper was additionally pressed with dry blotter and flattened between Reemay with a low-heat tacking iron.
Final steps
The final steps in our work on this extraordinary historic and artistic resource were consolidation and repair of the vellum cover and spine, and replacement of the missing headcaps. Also, the tears and losses to the flyleaves were repaired.
Top: Before; Bottom: After