The retouching on archaeological metal artifacts: reflections and proposals, between theory and practice

Abstract

When the restoration of archaeological metal artifacts is considered, the reconstruction and chromatic treatment of the gaps often determine the correct reading of the object, by suggesting its original morphology and external coloring as linked to the degraded surfaces.However, for such a kind of artifact, it is particularly frequent to deal with a remarkable diversity of reconstructions and integrations related to conceptions usually based on opposing principles ranging from mimetic integrations up to a strict rigorism. The purpose of the present work is to contribute to the definition of a conservative intervention protocol based on the reversibility to get a correct and widely perceptive presentation of the restoration work for this kind of artifacts, aimed at their formal reconstruction and aesthetic retouching.

Keywords

• Metallic artifacts
• retouching
• reintegration
• texture
• gaps