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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Lifestyle
Harriet Sherwood Arts and culture correspondent

Camera brings ‘unprecedented clarity’ to restoration of historic artworks

Conservators wearing blue gloves hang Constable’s painting Embarkation of George IV from Whitehall: The Opening of Waterloo Bridge after lengthy restoration works
Constable’s Embarkation of George IV from Whitehall: The Opening of Waterloo Bridge was transformed after National Trust conservators spent more than 270 hours removing layers of badly yellowed varnish. Photograph: National Trust Images/National Trust

Scientists have developed technology that will revolutionise the restoration of historic works of art by allowing conservators to identify and remove ageing varnish with total accuracy.

A team at King’s College London’s department of physics has harnessed the power of fluorescence to bring “unprecedented clarity” to the conservation process, said Prof Klaus Suhling.

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