After de-fitting and discovering the surprise of the bottom-left corner, where the canvas had been folded many times and rudimentarily packaged together by what looked like the work of an upholster, we were able to get the painting re-lined. Due to how thin and fragile the canvas was we decided to re-line it twice: first with a layer of Pe-Cap and then with a layer of archival linen. Hydration was administered where needed to treat the craquelures and in-painting helped conceal the craquelures and address the bottom-left corner where some paint loss had occurred. The original varnish was quite glossy and reflected lights very strongly. It was replaced with an archival varnish that we applied with several coats carefully coaxing them into the paint surface to once again help address the craquelures.

A new custom and hand carved Louis XIII frame was created and gilded with metal leaf. An archival fit brought the frame and painting together. Part One of this blog can be found HERE.